Crash & Burn
by Cynical Star
Summary: Wynter lives under the eye of Better Living Industries - the company that controls the world. After the bombings of 2012, the lives of four musicians are changed forever when they lose so much and become the Fabulous Killjoys - the rebels. Wynter meets them by accident and before she knows it, she's on the run. But there is more to the Killjoys than meets the eye...
1. Prologue

**P**RoLogu**E**

DECEMBER 17

2012

"You've _got_ to be kidding me." Frank Iero leant back against the couch, staring at the TV. The sound blared at full volume, and all four band members and their families lounged around the room. Everyone's eyes were glued to the screen, unable to fully process what they were seeing. A loud explosion sounded from the speakers, and the live camera that had been streaming to the news station went static. Everyone had gathered at Gerard and Lindsey Way's home in Los Angeles after the first announcement of a bombing scare.

_ "God damn it! Get the camera back on! Get it-"_ The news anchor shouted just as the camera flitted around to face him. Ruffling the papers on the desk in front of him, he smoothed his graying hair back and faced the camera.

_ "We apologize for the inconvenience, folks. The camera on site has had a temporary technical malfunction."_ He said, clearly improvising. Ray Toro sat forward, eyebrows knitting together. He grunted, rolling his eyes.

"Technical malfunction my- "

"Ray!" Christa Toro hissed at her husband, inclining her head towards the four toddlers in the room. Ray sank back in the chair reluctantly, fuming.

The news station's camera flicked to another live stream. The reporter was trying to beat back at the crowd that had gathered around the camera, screaming and trying to tell loved ones to _"get out while you can!"_

Lindsey stood up and stretched, holding her daughter's hand.

"I think I should take Bandit out to play. Jamia…?" Lindsey gestured towards the twins, Cherry and Lily, who were asleep between their parents, Jamia & Frank Iero, and at Miles, who slept in Frank's arms.

"Yes! That'd be a good idea. Pass me Miles, hun. I'll take him and the girls outside for a while." Frank held his son out for Jamia, and she took him in her arms.

"I'll be out in a minute." Frank said, a warm smile spreading across his face. Miles Iero, only 8 months old, was unaware of the tension in the room.

"Okay," Jamia said, glancing quickly around the room before following Lindsey outside.

After closing the sliding door behind them, Ray let out a long sigh.

"I know, I know." Christa, Ray's wife, patted his arm, leaning her head against his broad shoulder. Gerard turned down the volume on the huge plasma TV, and ran a hand through his recently-dyed brown hair. Mikey Way, Gerard's brother, and his partner, Alicia, sat on a two seater that was nearest the fire place. They just gazed at the TV, and occasionally Alicia would stare out the window, as if waiting for New York's destruction to reach L.A. Mikey had always been the quietest of the four band members, and his wife was exactly the same as him. They didn't need to talk all the time, unlike some people.

_ "In breaking news, New York has just been bombed again. All of Queens and most of Brooklyn have been hit. We have no recorded sightings of survivors or any live transmission from known radio or TV stations."_ The news anchor had changed now, and a younger presenter appeared on screen. _"A phone line has just been set up for family members that are concerned about relatives living in or around New York. Last known sightings should be mentioned, or the whereabouts of their apartments. Residents in Washington D.C. can call the following number…"_ The presenter started listing off phone numbers for each state, and when he got to California, Alicia burst into tears and hysterics. Mikey held her and gently rocked her back and forth. Nothing like this had ever happened, not since 9/11 at least, but in some ways, the bombings that were happening now were much worse. Mikey looked up to his older brother, Gerard, who shrugged his shoulders with a defeated look, his eyes sad. Ray seemed to hug Christa closer, and Frank leant forward, elbows on his knees.

The news anchor finished the list of numbers and began to talk again.

_ "Holy-" _Another live stream appeared on the screen, this time from in the cockpit of a helicopter. The camera kept jolting back and forth, but the viewer could get a pretty clear picture of what was being filmed. A long, black object cut through the sky, trailing a thin plume of white smoke behind it. The camera zoomed out in a wide angle shot, and then the Statue of Liberty was there, along with a large column of black smoke that rose from the midst of New York City. The missile was coming in fast, and Christa turned her face into Ray's shoulder, silently sobbing. The Statue went down in a fireball of debris and oddly-colored smoke. All of this happened in less than a second, and Gerard, Frank, Ray and Mikey stared on, watching New York burn to the ground.

_ "We have confirmed reports that Newark and Jersey City are down. Everything…" _The camera turned over to where Jersey City used to be, and through the microphone the news anchor took a deep breath.

_ "Everything is burning."_ The camera zoomed in on one particularly tall building that collapsed just as the camera had focused in on it, and it sent rubble flying out in every direction. People screamed and tried to get out of the way, but weren't fast enough. It was then that Gerard put his head down in his hands, his palms pressing hard against his eyelids. Mikey's eyes filled with tears and he tilted his head back, as if to beg that all of what was happening was just a dream. Belleville, near Newark, New Jersey, was where the brothers grew up together, and where their parents still lived. It was inevitable that Belleville no longer existed. Alicia and Christa had stopped crying, and their faces were pink, eyes wide, as they watched the TV screen.

"Jesus…" Frank started, but was lost for words. Frank also grew up near Newark, in Kearney, which was closer to where the bomb struck than where the Way brothers used to live. He still lived in the area. Gerard flicked the TV onto a station that was playing _Barney and Friends_. "Man…" Frank started to say something again but raked his fingers through his black, almost shoulder length hair. He let out a long breathe, shaking his head in his hands. Aside from the sound of Barney, everything was quiet between the friends.

The birds still sung, the sun still shone.

_ L.A. might be next._ Frank thought with a start, snapping his head up and then towards the sliding glass door. Jumping out of his seat, he literally ran to the door, sliding it open as fast as he could and running out of view into the Way's large backyard.

Ray lifted his head up, looking where Frank had disappeared. Ray was raised on the border of Kearney and Harrison. Everyone in the room had been affected in some way or the other, and for a few perplexing moments no one spoke. A couple of high pitched voices could be heard through the open door, but otherwise, it was quiet. Moments later, Lindsey came through the door with Bandit in her arms. She came to a stop in front of Gerard, who hadn't noticed she had come in. Reaching a hand out, she touched him lightly on the shoulder, and he looked up through the tangled mess of his dark hair. Tears already streaked his cheeks.

"Bandit, do you wanna go outside and play with the twins again?" Ray asked her, and she turned towards him. Her small face was blank, but Ray stood up anyway and took her from Lindsey. Heading outside, he closed the sliding door behind him and walked into the later afternoon sun. When the two had gone, Lindsey pulled Gerard up and embraced him. After a moment's hesitation, he wrapped his arms around her, and they stood there like that for a while, each of their heads buried in the other's shoulder. Alicia and Mikey exchanged a silent look, and then Alicia looked towards Christa, who was staring at the ground, elbows on her thighs. Sensing Alicia's stare, Christa looked up at Alicia, then at Mikey, then at Gerard and Lindsey. Nodding, she stood up quietly and followed Alicia to the kitchen. After the kitchen door closed, Gerard let go of Lindsey, whose eyes flicked towards Mikey, then back at Gerard. He kissed her quickly, and then she went back outside where Frank, Ray and the kids were. Shutting the glass door behind her, she gave Gerard a wistful look before turning away.

Gerard turned towards his brother, who had stood up now, too. Both of them started for each other at the same time, and they hugged one another for a long minute in silence. It was Gerard that broke the hug.

"I think we need to leave." Gerard said solemnly. His eyes were fixed upon Mikey's and shone, hazel in color. Mikey's own eyes widened before he shook his head reluctantly.

"It's probably best," Mikey said quietly. "I'll tell Alicia." He headed towards the closed kitchen door, but Gerard grabbed his arm.

"We need to talk to everyone together, Mikey." Gerard said gravely, his voice low. Strands of hair hung over his darkened eyes.

"Okay," Mikey nodded twice, then turned back to the kitchen door and pushed it open. Heading outside, Gerard found the others in the backyard, the kids all playing on the lush, green lawn, rolling around in the sunshine. Lindsey saw Gerard coming and opened her arms, hugging him tightly. Leaning back to look at his serious face, she realized something was wrong.

"What?" She asked with a confused look on her face. Gerard saw the others looking at him from the corner of his eye.

"Everyone needs to come inside." His voice was low, but Frank and Ray still heard him. Frank looked at Jamia and Ray, and Ray looked at Gerard. Nodding, Frank bent down in front of the twins. He took each of their hands, and Jamia picked up Miles before heading inside again. Bandit stumbled up to Gerard and threw her arms around his legs. Lifting her up, he carried her inside, followed by everyone else.

Mikey and Alicia were sitting where they had been before, but Christa was kneeling on the floor near the fire place. Ray went over and sat next to her, and Frank and Jamia sat on the long, L shaped couch with their kids. Lindsey welcomed Bandit into her arms again and sat next to Jamia.

"So, here's the thing," Gerard remained standing, and addressed them all. "We don't know what's happening, or why. And we're just ordinary citizens like everyone else." He paused, waiting for everyone to settle down. "But we've gotta leave." Gerard waited, letting it sink in. The first to reply was Christa.

"Leave?" Christa glanced around uncertainly. "We don't even live in L.A. I have family to get back to. I have things I would need to pack and the planes probably won't even be running and-and-and-" Christa didn't start sobbing this time, but her shoulders shook, even with Ray's arm around them. After what they'd all just witnessed on TV, they should all be acting like Christa, or at least be feeling it.

"I know this is gonna be hard. But if we stay here . . . L.A. might be next. Aside from Washington, we're a target and we need to leave." Bandit's eyes were wide, and she seemed to understand everything her father was saying, ever if she was so young. The twins had stopped squirming and were quiet too.

"He's right." Frank said, standing up. "If we don't leave, something could happen to all of us. And we need to stick together. This might not be major, but we just watched New Jersey and _Liberty_ go up in flames." He stretched out his hands in disbelief, shaking his head.

"Things are going to get worse before they get better." Ray spoke, looking up from the floor. Alicia nodded, so did Jamia and Gerard.

"Where are we going to go, though?" Lindsey asked, her head tilted to the side. Frank paused, silent in his own thoughts.

"There's Arizona, Nevada. Maybe Utah if we can keep going for that long." Frank said, looking at each face in the room.

"But Arizona's like, 300 miles away! And Phoenix will be so crow-" Alicia started to say, but Mikey interrupted.

"We wouldn't be going to Phoenix. Maybe one of the other smaller cities there, further away from the big cities." He looked at her, willing for her to agree. Slowly nodding her head, Alicia turned round to face the others.

"When do we leave?" She asked, a slight hint of terror gleaming in her eyes.

"In two days maybe? That should give us enough time to pack what we've got and leave." Gerard said, again looking at everyone's face.

"We'll need to get extra gas then. The prices will probably go up a lot." Ray mentioned, scratching his head. His afro hair bounced around his shoulders in dark waves.

"We should have at least two cars. But definitely off-roaders. We could end up driving anywhere." Frank said, his eyebrows weaving in deep thought.

"I have a Hummer we could use. It fits 5 or 6 people if we don't have luggage." Ray started, trailing off.

"We've got a land cruiser. That fits four, and has tons of room in the boot for our stuff . . ." Lindsey said.

"Okay, that's great. We should start getting petrol in containers and stuff, and make sure your car is completely full." Gerard said, aiming the last bit at Ray. "We'll meet back here tomorrow night and leave first thing the following morning. Maybe earlier if we want to beat the traffic." Gerard said, clapping his hands together in conclusion. Lindsey and Christa nodded slowly. Tension filled the room, and Barney was _still_ singing in the background, but at least they had a plan.

The next evening, everyone had gathered back at Gerard and Lindsey's house. Bags and suitcases filled the room, along with survival gear and some MRE's that Mikey had bought at a hunting and game store.

They stocked up on water and baby food, warm clothes, and anything else they thought they'd need. Everyone sat in the lounge again, watching TV. The only thing on the news was the replays from the other attacks, and no one seemed to want to watch those, so the channel was on a music station. Bandit was asleep in Gerard's arms, and the twins were starting to knock off on the couch. Miles was rolling around on the floor next to Frank. Picking up the remote, Mikey scrolled lazily through the different channels, before ending up on the news again.

_ ". . . have shocked the nation. Speaking with us now, live, is the President." _The reporter had changed again, and was now a young woman who looked like she'd only just finished school.

"What timing." Frank mumbled to himself.

_ "Thanks for having me on, Jenny." _The President's tone was casual, like he wasn't addressing the direst situation that had happened since 9/11, or Pearl Harbor.

_ "We'll get right into it then. Do you know why these attacks have been aimed at New York in particular?"_

_ "No, actually. I have my people working on it but so far we can't figure out what nation is threatening us. The first and second missiles came from somewhere in the South Atlantic Ocean, but the others came from all over. The Gulf of Alaska, the Norwegian Sea and more. We can't yet figure out _who_ these people are, but all the missiles have been released from the ocean._" The President's dark hair was slicked back with so much gel that it looked like plastic, and his eyes were deep and thoughtful. His voice, however, was arrogant and overconfident, like he thought he knew everything. Even though he was the President, it didn't mean that he automatically knew the wonders of the universe.

_ "And do you think we should be expecting any more missiles in the meantime? Or in any other states for that matter?" _The screen was split in two – the reporter looking smart and neat on one side, and the President on the other side. He shook his head, but his hair stayed flattened in place.

_ "Other attacks are inevitable and unlikely at the same time. Major cities could be expected to get hit, but we don't want to cause any panic. It's best if everyone stays where they are and-" _The President was cut short by the reporter, whose blonde hair looked greasy in the lighting.

_ "I'm sorry, Mr. President, but we have unconfirmed reports of bombings in and around Montana, Colorado and Wyoming."_ The image changed to a view that overlooked Montana. The camera was stationed high up in the mountains, and gave a widespread view of Billings. A missile slammed into Billings, and created a huge fireball. Debris flew everywhere, and the camera was knocked off its legs and fell on the ground.

_ "Make that, _confirmed_ reports."_ The reporter paused before continuing. _ "If you've just joined us, we were interviewing the President of the United States, and a bomb has just struck Billings, Montana. Population is estimated at one hundred and four thousand."_

"Not again. . ." Frank moaned quietly. All eyes were on the screen now as the President began to panic.

_ "I know I told everyone to stay where they were, but the next state most likely to get hit is California. Los Angeles mainly. You need to start packing survival supplies and evacuate first this tomorrow morning." _As the President was saying this, his voice sped up like he was afraid of getting cut off. When the President finished talking hurriedly, disbelief shattered the room.

"What? But that's when we're leaving!" Christa cried, eyebrows arching. Low murmurs echoed around the large room, and Gerard sighed and turned to face everyone.

"We should leave now." He said.

"We can't! We planned for tomorrow, not today! And it'll be dark soon!" Christa hissed, her eyes angry.

"We have everything we need, we just have to get out of California now, before anything else happens." Gerard raked his fingers through his hair so hard it seemed that he was close to pulling it all out. Mikey nodded, thinking hard.

"If we don't leave now, we'll be stuck here. Everyone else will be busy packing right _now._" Mikey pointed his finger at the ground. "So it's best we all leave soon, while we still can." His voice was firm, and it was the kind of tone that everyone listened to.

"What're we waiting for then?" Lindsey said, standing up and taking Bandit from Gerard.

"Me and Jamia will get the kids in the cars and come back for the food, you guys can pack all the other stuff and hope it fits. Alicia, Christa? Do you mind bringing the food down with us?" Lindsey eyebrows rose. Christa nodded, and Alicia stood up, letting go of Mikey's hand. After the women had left the room, Mikey, Ray, Frank and Gerard all stretched before taking all the bags down to the garage. Cramming them all into the two cars, they shut the boots and locked them. Ray had bought over the Hummer, and the land cruiser was beside it. Frank hugged Jamia and then his daughters before getting in the land cruiser. Gerard and Lindsey sat in the front, with Bandit on Lindsey's lap. Mikey, Alicia and Frank sat in the back. In the Hummer, Ray and Christa sat in the front, with Jamia, the twins and Miles in the back, along with a few of their food bags beside Jamia. When everyone was ready to go, both cars pulled out of the garage and sped down the road. Looking back at their home for probably the last time, Lindsey and Gerard exchanged a gloomy look.

The world as they knew it crashed and burned to the ground around them.

Everything was changing.


	2. Chapter One

1

7 YEARS LATER

September 2019

Wynter's feet padded quietly on the wet concrete. She was always the one that was sent out on the Better Living pill rounds. More often than not, her step-father would be at work and her mother busy with the twins. No one else was left to do it, she'd soon realized, and decided her family relied on her.

Pulling her black coat tighter around her shoulders, she hurried down the street, trying to not make it obvious. Under the effect of BLI medication, no one hurried to do anything. You were calm, restrained, and unusually happy.

Her mind wandered as she walked, and before she knew it, she was lost. Looking around at the empty alleyway she was in, Wynter couldn't believe her eyes. It was hard getting lost in Battery City, especially considering she'd lived there almost seven years. Tall, old brick buildings crowded around her for attention, and she felt herself starting to panic. She had never been good with claustrophobia.

Wynter rushed along to the end of the alleyway and came to an unfamiliar street. Trying to calm down, she reminded herself about the symptoms of taking BL/Ind pills. Steadying herself and breathing deep, Wynter loosened her shoulders and began a steady walk to the footpath. Turning right, she made her way down the unfamiliar street, nothing that the shops on both sides were dark and gloomy. The buildings around her were tall and still made of bricks - a building material that practically hadn't been used in six years. Most of the other buildings in Battery City were made of metal or reinforced, blindingly white plastic that was painted with the BL/Ind logo. The largest building in Battery City was the Head Quarters of Better Living Industries itself. Nearly sixty stories tall and nearly a half kilometer wide, it dominated the cities center.

Noticing a storm moving in, Wynter began to panic a little inside and ducked into the nearest alleyway she could find. As she rounded the corner at the end of the short alley, Wynter found herself in an area cleared of cluttered buildings and dingy streets. To her left was a long, wide road that disappeared around a corner. Straight in front of her was a large bridge that crossed over a dwindling little river.

Lightly colored bush scrubs clung to the walls of the ravine, and she could make out some of the multi colored pebbles that littered the bottom of the river. Across the bridge was a large building complex – all white, of course. The giant words, _Better Living Industries_ were placed above the double door entrance. _This must be one of the stations._ BL/Ind had stations set up all over the western parts of the States, as far as Wynter knew.

The building was only four stories tall but widespread across the recently-concreted ground. Slinking across the bridge as quickly as she could, Wynter scanned the windows and doorways for any sign of movement. A lot of the BLI stations were shut down due to hacking and vandalism.

No lights came from any of the windows she could see, so Wynter made her way to the double glass doors. Nobody was inside that she saw either. Opening the door swiftly, her movements were deliberate and slow as she closed it quietly behind her. The glass of the door shimmered in the late afternoon light. Battery City was practically in the middle of nowhere, but it used to be a bustling state. Before the bombings, California was home to movie stars, singers and million dollar mansions. But the attacks changed all of that. California was now a barren desert, with few forests and trees. The most common and deadly storm out there were dust storms.

No one knew why, but since the bombings that left the world shell shocked, everything anyone knew about nature changed. Tsunamis rose out of nowhere, on beaches, in the middle of the Atlantic and even in large lakes and rivers. Dust storms were a deep blood red and could last up to a fortnight. Twisters, hurricanes and ice storms also battered California. Rain scarcely existed in the west anymore, it was mostly ice, no matter how hot the day might have been.

Resting her head against the cool metal frame of the door for a moment, she calmed her heart rate down. If she was spotted sweating or breathing hard, she would be sent to the BL/Ind HQ. Once you went in, you never came out. At least that's what the girl at Wynter's school had said before she was taken away. She never came back either.

Wynter wasn't surprised the door to the BLI station had been unlocked. In most parts of the States now, everything could be left unlocked. Under the influence of the pills, you weren't curious of the complex or even more simple things.

Gazing at her surroundings, she could just see the BL/Ind logo on the wall behind the reception desk, and the _Keep Smiling_ motto was plastered to the front of the desk.

It was dark inside, even more so because of the many thick white pillars that stood around the room, supporting the ceiling and blocking light. Making her way across the shining white floors, she tried to hide behind the pillars. Wynter couldn't see anyone around, not even behind the front desk. Sneaking down the hall at the far left corner of the huge room, she didn't see anyone down it. Putting her ear softly against a few doors as she went down the hall, she heard nothing from behind any of them. She didn't dare to open any, for fear it would set off an alarm or that someone is inside and will spot her. Sneaking back down the hall, she hears a faint rustling and a mumble of voices. As her heart skips a beat, Wynter whips her head around frantically, searching for a place to hide.

There was no time to go back out the front door, but she couldn't be caught just standing around. There was a wall to her right, and open space on the left. Peering down the right wall, she spotted the jagged piece of metal sticking out from the wall slightly, and raced for it as quietly as she could. It turned out to be a door, and without thinking, Wynter threw it open and closed it softly behind her. The room she was in was small, probably a janitor's closet. There was a small, narrow tinted window above the door handle that allowed her to look out without the fear that someone would see her.

"They're on their way now." The voice sounded like a whisper from behind the door, and two men came into Wynter's view. Stifling a gasp, Wynter instantly recognized Korse, the creator and head of Better Living Industries. She looked on, trying to make herself small in the closet.

"Tonight is the night." The other man Wynter did not recognize – he was short, plump and balding. Korse nodded eagerly, his already bald head gleaming in the dim light. The other man walked over to the reception desk and flicked a switch under the desktop. A hazy blue light lit the room up, but barely. Wynter could now see a little of what was in the closet.

Metal shelves full of labeled boxes and hand held machines were on the back wall, and mops, buckets and brooms leant against the wall. She squinted at one of the boxes and could just make out the label, _Cooking Utensils_. Opening the box as quietly as she could, Wynter prayed she would find a useful weapon on the off chance that Korse decided today was the day to do some cleaning. On top of the pile of forks, plates and sieves, was a huge knife.

About twelve inches long with a six inch handle, it sparkled before her excited eyes. Slipping the knife into her belt, Wynter carefully pushed the box back into place, undisturbed.

Ducking back to the door, she peered through the window. Korse and the man were now waiting patiently on the other side of the room, armed with ray guns and Draculoids. Wynter shivered in her coat, even though it was warm in the closet. Draculoids, or Dracs, were basically the soldiers of BLI. Wearing black and white suits with masks on, they put everyone into order. The masks were designed to look like vampires, which was where the Draculoid name originated. Spacing themselves around the room, there must have been fifteen Dracs, all armed. Suddenly, Korse lifts his head up from where he was fiddling with his ray gun, and turns to almost sniff the air. Just when his head aimed in the direction of Wynter, a warning barked from one of the sound systems, stating that "They're only one minute away." Korse readies himself, seeming to forget about Wynter. Sighing with relief, she watches the front door for whatever was meant to be coming.

Wynter heard a screeching sound followed by three short bangs. In front of the double glass doors, an old car screamed to a stop, and four figures jumped out. At that same moment, a loud siren sounded, blaring clearly, echoing off the pillars. Wynter's eyes bulged out of their sockets as she took it all in. The first of the figures to enter wore a yellow eye mask that was dotted with a few blue circles.

She could tell it was a man from the way he walked, and he had brilliantly red hair the just reach his chin line. The sleeves of the blue jacket he wore were rolled up to his elbows, and he walked with confidence and purpose. The ray gun he held was a bright yellow, and he quickly bought it up to eye level and fired. The closest Draculoid fell, unprepared for the attack. A dark stain leaked out around his body almost immediately. Wynter quickly realized that this was serious, and what she was witnessing could get her imprisoned.

The second person to go over the threshold of the door was another man dressed in a red jacket with a yellow and black leopard print shirt underneath. Now that she thought about it, Wynter realized all four of the figures were men. The man in the red jacket had a striking resemblance to the first man, even though it was hard to tell in the poor lighting.

The third and fourth men entered the room at the same time. One was wearing a black jacket and had dark hair that was curled so much it looked like an afro. He wore an eye patch on one eye and his ray gun was pointed at a Drac. Moments later the Drac fell to the white floor, which was now smeared with blood and dirt.

The fourth man had an army-green vest on over a yellow shirt, and was pulling a ray gun from a holster inside his vest. Ray gun blasts were going off in every direction, a muffled sound compared to the siren, which was still going off. With a sudden realization, Wynter noticed who exactly she was looking at. In school and on TV, there were always articles and books and stories about the Fabulous Killjoys.

They were a group of guys who got together after the bombings and formed their own group. They fought back against Better Living Industries, and made up nicknames for themselves so no one would know their real identities. Along with that, they each wore a mask that covered part of or most of their face. Now everyone who rebelled against BLI were known as killjoys, and gave themselves a name to go by. Wynter looked on in horror as Korse hid behind one of the pillars as more and more Dracs appeared, only to be killed by these mysterious strangers. The four killjoys that started the rebellion each had a name for themselves too, if she remembered correctly.

There was Party Poison, the leader. His striking red hair almost glowed behind his yellow eye mask. Then there was Kobra Kid, his brother. Generally, he wore a helmet with the words _Good Luck_ written across the front. Jet Star was next, he wore a helmet too, but it was a plain black one. Lastly, there was Fun Ghoul. Normally, he wouldn't wear his mask at all, but it was a purple monster mask with fuzzy green hair.

Wynter easily recognized each of them from the pictures that had been put up around Battery City to capture the Fabulous Killjoys. BL/Ind wanted them exterminated.

Wynter thought otherwise.

Party Poison and Fun Ghoul both headed down the hall to a door, which they opened and entered. Jet Star and Kobra Kid still held their ground, shooting every which way to clear the Dracs from their path. Kobra Kid ran over to guard the door, and Party Poison and Fun Ghoul came out of it with a young girl between them. Party Poison was holding her hand, and shooting with the other. The three of them walked back down the hall to the reception area, flanked by Jet Star. A swarm of Draculoids came out of a door at the far end of the room, wearing their creepy masks and some even had newer masks on – they were white with black, smiling faces on them. Wynter shivered again as she noticed that the Killjoys were going to run into the Dracs without even knowing it. At the last minute though, before the Dracs came around the corner, the Killjoys held up their guns in unison and fired several shots each in a row, and the Dracs fell to the floor. More of them poured through the door. Pushing the girl behind them, the Killjoys continued to shoot at the oncoming Dracs, and the girl pressed her palms to her ears. She looked more confident than Wynter herself felt, even though she was half her age. Everyone was in the reception room now, and it was chaos. Fun Ghoul ran behind a pillar and mouthed something to himself that Wynter couldn't make out. Kobra Kid and Party Poison pressed back to back and fired with precision. Jet Star opened the double doors to clear the way, just as Kobra Kid fired point-blank into a Drac's chest. Party Poison fired a round off into the back of a retreating Drac's head and pulled of the mask as the body toppled to the ground. Wynter's heart nearly stopped in her chest, and she didn't dare breath.

There was a human face beneath the mask.

The Draculoids were humans, probably heavily drugged and trained, but humans nonetheless. All her life, Wynter had been taught that the Dracs were programmed, which obviously sounded like they were robots with eerily similar human qualities.

_ I guess they weren't robots._ Wynter thought to herself as she forced another breath through her mouth. Party Poison opened his mouth in shock, and stood still, the mask dropping from his hands. Wynter knew at that moment that she wasn't the only one who didn't know what they Draculoids' true identities were. Party Poison looked around, almost shaking his head, and bought his gun up again, backing against a pillar behind him. Jet Star ran to the center of the room, firing off one shot kills. She blinked hard, squinting. The light was starting to affect her vision, and the flashing lights from the ray beams weren't helping her. The siren had gone off too.

All of a sudden, Wynter snapped back to focus as Party Poison was slammed against a pillar by . . . Korse? His bald head gleamed, and his left hand was pinning Party Poison's shoulder to the wall. Wynter realized it _was_ Korse, and she put her hand up to her mouth to stop from screaming. Party's face went rigid, his teeth clenched tightly together. To her right, Wynter saw the Kobra Kid had noticed something was wrong, and he started sprinting towards his brother. Everything started to turn to slow motion then, like everyone was running and shooting through jelly. Party stared Korse in the eyes, before looking to the little girl. His eyes lingered there. Wynter could see the sides of Korse's lips twitch, and she saw him smile. Only it wasn't really a smile because his eyes were cold.

It was more of a sneer.

A bright white light blasted from the tip of Korse's white gun, and Party Poison fell. His eyelids closed, the whites of his eyes showing before his eyelids fully shut. Even through all the commotion, Wynter could still hear Kobra Kid scream. It was full of pain and defeat, and Kobra Kid bought his gun up and managed to fire off a shot before he went down a second later, too. The little girl was screaming now, her eyes clenched tightly shut, her shoulders hunched over in a poor attempt to make herself smaller, much the same as Wynter had been doing earlier. Fun Ghoul and Jet Star grabbed the little girl and ran for the door, shooting more frantically now as they ran. Wynter's eyes started to water as Fun Ghoul pulled back the door and closed it. The little girl screamed again, tears pouring out of her wide eyes. She reached out a hand to Fun Ghoul, who placed his hand on the glass before turning around and firing once more. Jet Star grabbed the little girl again and they ran from view. It took two shots before Fun Ghoul would go down, and he silently wailed in pain as his gun clattered to the ground, and a moment later, so did he. Wynter felt the tears streaming down her cheeks now, tears for these strangers, and for the little girl.

Party Poison was slumped against the white pillar now, and dead Dracs were piled up everywhere. Sensing movement, Wynter turned and saw a van pull up beside the old car, which had a body lying on its bonnet. With an intake of breath, Wynter saw that it was Jet Star. Turning back to the van, she saw the van's driver was a blonde woman wearing a bright pink sweatshirt. The sliding door opened and a figure wearing a helmet and white and blue polka dot tights stepped out, firing at the Dracs as the little girl jumped into the van. A few Dracs tried to chase the departing van but didn't get far. Turning her attention back to the room, Wynter angrily rubbed the back of her hand over her face, clearing the tears away. Korse ordered two of the Dracs to pick up Party Poison's body and put it on the reception desk. Korse grabbed a large white bag from under the desk and laid it out on the surface. Unzipping it, he folded back the flap as the Dracs put Party Poison's body in the bag, and zipped it up.

Wynter wanted so badly to turn away, but found she was stuck in place, her eyes unblinking, her breathing shallow and quiet. Korse pointed to the door and the surviving Dracs followed him outside, and the walked until Wynter couldn't see anyone anymore. She waited another ten minutes before opening the closet door, just to be sure no one was coming back. What she stepped into was straight out of a horror movie. Wynter smelt blood all around her, and stared at the mass of bodies that littered the white floor. Moving swiftly, she peeked around a pillar to look outside, beyond the double doors. The old car was still there, with Jet Star splayed out against the bonnet. The van was nowhere in sight, and she couldn't see the Draculoids or Korse in any direction.

"Ah…" Someone moaned from behind her, and Wynter spun around. Seeing a figure trying to sit up, she realized that it was Kobra Kid. He was slowly scooting towards the nearest pillar.

"Ah…crap." He mumbled in frustration as he pressed his hand hard against his right leg. Snapping back into focus, Wynter rushed over to help him, not even thinking twice about it.

"Oh my God, are you okay?" She asked nervously, crouching down beside Kobra. As fast as he could manage, he pulled out his gun and aimed it at her, suddenly breathless. His eyes widened at the same moment hers did, and Wynter backed off, holding her hands up where he could see them.

"Whoa, whoa. I'm trying to help you." She said stubbornly. After a moment's hesitation, Kobra lowered his gun. A confused look spread across his face as the wheels started to turn in his head.

"You aren't…one of them?" He asked, quickly glancing around the room, afraid that someone was watching them.

"Of course not, now let me see how bad this is." Wynter waited for him as he lifted his hand away from the wound. A small squirt of blood bubbled out from his thigh, and Kobra Kid instantly pressed his hand back onto the wound, wincing. Wynter shook her head and got up, confidently walking over to the supply closet. A moment later, she was back in the reception area, holding a large box.

"Wh-what's that?" Kobra nodded towards the box she was putting down by his leg. Wynter opened up the box and rifled through it, pulling out a long, curved needle and some plastic thread.

"It's for your shoulder. My mom used to be a nurse, so I know what I'm doing." Wynter explained to him as she unwound the thread. Wynter's mother had been a nurse before the bombings started, and from a young age she taught Wynter everything she knew about first aid and surgery. Wynter had been young, so she absorbed everything like a sponge. If she was a little older, Wynter probably would want to be a nurse or doctor.

"No," Kobra said sternly, holding up his free hand. "First you tell me who you are and where you came from." Kobra insisted, his light brown eyes focused, then unfocused on her own. Wynter put down the tools and rubbed her hand on her bent knees.

"Fair enough," Wynter began as she hurriedly explained who she was and how she ended up in the BL/Ind station. After she finished, Kobra was almost nodding off, probably from the loss of blood.

"I need to do this now, okay?" Wynter didn't want to startle Kobra with the needle, in case he jumped and the needle bit into him. Kobra nodded, taking his hand off his thigh. Cleaning away the blood with anti-bacterial wipes, Wynter began the process of stitching up the ray gun wound. It only took five minutes, because Wynter used to practice on soft toys at home before the bombings.

"Okay, all done. You should probably take these," Wynter handed him two small white pills, placing them in the palm of his hand. "They'll make you feel stronger until you can sleep it off." Wynter began to pack up the box, but decided against it and instead put the most vital of the medical supplies into her backpack. The only things left in the box when she returned it to the supply closet were a few bottles of useless, expired pills and some scalpels. When Wynter got back to Kobra, he was already better and had started gathering his gun and knife from where they fell when he went down.

"Thanks," He started, looking up at her, but then thought better of what he was saying and shook his head. Wynter offered him a hand and he took it, wobbling unsteadily on his feet before placing a hand against the white pillar, smearing it with blood. "I'm Kobra, by the way." He said then turned away and limped towards where his brother laid on the top of the desk.

"I know who you are," Wynter said, walking behind him. A scuffling sound made them both turn, and a figure staggered towards them. Wynter stifled a scream in her mouth before she realized it was Fun Ghoul who was coming towards them. Tattoos covered part of his neck and his arms, all the way to his fingertips, but they looked dull and faded in the light.

"Jesus, man, what did you do?" Kobra tried to joke, but it ended up being serious. Reaching out toward Ghoul, Kobra steadied him. Ghoul rubbed his head, and then his left shoulder, near his collarbone, where the blood had started to dry and crust over.

"It wasn't my fault." Ghoul moaned, scratching some of the Drac's blood from his arm. He suddenly seemed to notice Wynter, and bought his hand up. Wynter squinted, but couldn't see a gun in his hand. Kobra muffled a snicker, and Ghoul lowered his hand in embarrassment.

"Okay, okay, you're so funny." Ghoul said to Kobra before turning to Wynter. "Who the hell are you?" He asked, narrowing his eyes. Wynter tried to shrink, but failed. Even standing before just two of the greatest Killjoys to ever live was terrifying in its own way. Wynter tried to speak, but her fear and awe got the best of her.

"Wynter. Her real name is Wynter. But we'll do something about that later." _Something about that later?_ Kobra nodded to her before turning away and limping again towards his brother. Ghoul watched her eyes follow Kobra before moving back to himself. Offering his hand, Wynter shyly took it.

"Ghoul. But you knew that right?" Wynter nodded, letting go of his hand and turning back to where Kobra had limped off. When Wynter reached him, he was standing over Party Poison. Bending down over him, she unzipped the bag that covered his body. Kobra slowly sat down in one of the swivel chairs that was behind the desk, clearly showing how painful even that was. His hand reached out to touch his brother's shoulder, but he took it back and sat there quietly. Eyeing Kobra carefully, Wynter held her two fingers out to Party's neck. She felt a light, fluttering heartbeat, but there was definitely one there. Sighing in relief, Wynter examined Party. Under his chin was a glowing red mark, probably from where the laser had gotten him. Eyebrows knitted in confusion, Wynter quickly looked over Party's body, searching for any other reasons for him to be unconsciousness. Wynter felt warm breath on her neck, and snapped her head back only to find Ghoul staring at her.

"Sorry." She quickly said before turning back to Party. Steadying her breath, Wynter took her backpack off and found a type of cream that said it helped with swelling and bruising, so she spread some underneath Party's chin and down part of his neck. Screwing the cap of the tube back on, she stood up straight and turned back to Ghoul.

"Are you hurt?" She asked, looking at his arm first, then his eyes. Ghoul shook his head, and then clenched his eyes shut for a quick moment before opening them again. Wynter sighed, rummaging through her bag.

"Take . . . this." Wynter opened a bottle and poured a couple of pills onto Ghoul's hand.

"What are you, a walking pharmacy?" Ghoul asked sarcastically before eyeing the pills carefully. Deciding that it was best to take the medication, he dry swallowed them before coming to stand next to Wynter. Bending over Party, he frowned.

"Where's Jet?" He asked, looking at Wynter. Wynter blinked, then swore, and raced out of the reception room and to the car that was waiting out front. Jet Star laid where he fell, and Wynter bent over him. She could hear him breathing, which was always a good sign. Ghoul had followed her outside, but slowly because he felt like he was walking on a tightrope and trying not to fall.

"Is he okay?" Ghoul asked, leaning forward on the car's bonnet. "This is so screwed up. We should've gotten them. We should've . . ." Ghoul trailed off, and Wynter tuned out, examining the small wound on the side of Jet's torso. The laser blast had fried the ends of his jacket and shirt, so she could see the wound clearly.

"Yeah, can you get me my bag? Please?" Wynter interrupted Ghoul's babbling, looking to him.

"Oh. Sure. Hang on." He stumbled back inside and came out a moment later with Wynter's black, nondescript bag. Opening it, Wynter found more of the antiseptic wipes and cleaned Jet's wound. Then she put a gauze bandage over it, taping it down. It should hold, for now. Popping two more of the miracle pills into Jet's mouth, Wynter fished out her half-empty water bottle and tried to get him to swallow.

"Wh-whaat?" Jet mumbled, his eyelids fluttering. Wynter put her gear back in her bag and zipped it up. Jet's eyes opened quickly, looking around, before finally focusing on Wynter and Ghoul.

"Wh-who…" He started, but stopped, swallowing hard. Wynter shook her head and offered her hand, and he took it, stumbling to a stand.

"Wynter." She introduced herself. "You need to sit down. If you walk for much longer with that," She nodded to his torso. "Then you'll probably pass out." Jet Star looked confused and amazed at the same time. He looked down and prodded at the white bandage covering his wound. It had started to turn red, but the blood flow was clearly slowing down. None the less, he followed Wynter's lead to the car. She left him to open the door himself before turning to Ghoul.

"We need to get Party out of there." He said before Wynter could say it herself. Nodding, she followed him back inside, where Kobra was still sitting with his brother. Gently touching his arm, Ghoul said something to Kobra that Wynter couldn't hear, and he got up and limped outside to the car. Ghoul looked towards her before she could say anything else. "You okay to move him with me?" He asked her.

"I'm the only one that _isn't _hurt here. Of course I can move him." Wynter headed for Party's shoulder, and looped her arms under his.

"Now," Ghoul said, lifting Party's feet up. They'd fully unzipped the body bag when they found him, so it was easier to maneuver him outside to the car. It took a few minutes, but when party was sitting upright in the car next to Kobra and Jet, Ghoul climbed in behind the wheel.

"You can't drive this! You have a concussion!" Wynter exclaimed, leaning in through the driver's window.

"Don't be stupid, of course I can drive." Ghoul turned the keys in the ignition, and the car rumbled to life. After a few seconds, it settled to a low purr. "Can't you?" Wynter shook her head reluctantly, walking over to the passenger side and getting in. "Right then. Let's go." Ghoul pressed his foot on the accelerator and they drove away from the white BL/Ind station.


	3. Chapter Two

2

A few minutes later, the car sped out of the street and onto a wide road, pushing the speed limit. Ghoul picked up the speed, controlling the car with excellent care, never off center on the road. At the end of the street, about a half kilometer away, stood a wide, black mouth. Darkness had fallen only twenty minutes ago, and Wynter could see the dim lighting of the tunnel even from the car. They travelled down the long, white tunnel that was dotted with BL/Ind logos – '_We can fix you'_ and '_Building a better life'_. A picture of a young girl was taped to the dashboard of the 1979 Pontiac Trans Am, her curly hair splayed out like an afro and her multi colored jacket glowed through the photo in the tunnels yellow lighting. Wynter glanced sideways at Ghoul before turning to look out the window. Hugging the bag tighter to her chest, Wynter closed her eyes.

"How old are you?" Ghoul asked, and Wynter's eyes opened groggily. It'd been a long day. She blinked, her eyes heavy, before answering.

"Sixteen. Just sixteen." She said. "Why?" Confusion clouded her eyes as she looked at Ghoul, whose eyes were on the road.

"Do you have anywhere to go back to? Are there any more like you?"

"Like me?"

"Yeah. Others that don't take the pills." Ghoul said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Oh. No, there's just me. I knew of this other girl once, but she left." Wynter said before turning back to the window.

"Left? Yeah, I'm sure she did." Ghoul said sarcastically, a cynical smile painting his lips. Wynter rolled her eyes and gazed out at the ever changing landscape. They were out of the city now, into the wild. The road wound around corners every few seconds, and the trees grew thick and thin depending on which way you looked at them.

"Wait, where are we going? I need to go home!" Wynter suddenly realized they were at least a few miles from the city, but the car didn't slow down. The voice that answered came from the back.

"She has a point. Why are we taking her with us? She'll be in danger." Jet was the speaker, and Wynter could see him in the rear view mirror. Ghoul sighed, as if every answer was obvious now.

"Because there were cameras back at the station, they probably have scouts scouring the city for her right now. And if we take her back, they could catch _us_." Ghoul said. Jet rolled his eyes in the back, and then closed them, taking a breath.

"Fra-" He stopped himself, eyes flicking to Wynter, then to the back of Ghoul's head. "Ghoul. That happened a long time ago. You can't do this, and you know-"

"No. Do _not_ talk to me about that. Don't even mention it. You know what happened last time." Ghoul hissed, his voice low but deadly. Poison dripped from his words, and his knuckles whitened from his grip on the steering wheel. Wynter turned to face Jet, but he'd already closed his eyes to rest again. Kobra, though, his eyes were alert, and he noticed that she had turned around, and Wynter caught a look in his eye that said, _don't go there_. Wynter nodded slightly before turning back. On the large seat she was in, she stretched her legs and leant back. The seat was soft and velvety, a deep gray in color. Closing her eyes, Wynter shifted to a more comfortable position before trying to sleep.

After what felt like two minutes later, Wynter woke with a start. All was quiet in the car, even the car itself seemed silent. Wynter rubbed sleep out of her eyes and flicked a glance toward the clock. The green, glowing numbers showed it had been three hours since leaving the BLI station. Sitting up from her slouched position, the only lighting Wynter could see was the dim glow of the headlights that illuminated the desert road before the car. A few trees flitted past, only black silhouettes against the half moon. Dust kicked up behind the car, and all three killjoys were asleep in the back seat. Turning her eyes towards Ghoul, she noticed his grip had slackened on the wheel, and his eyes were starting to droop.

"Pull over." Wynter said quietly, and Ghoul nearly jumped. His gaze skimmed over to where she sat beside him, then went back to the road.

"Can't. We have a few more hours to go." Ghoul rubbed his eyes with one hand.

"Don't you at least have some food you can eat?" Wynter asked, leaning forward to look at Ghoul's face. Deep circles were under his eyes, and his skin was pale white in the slight lighting. The car finally came to a stop at the side of the road where there was a thin, straggly tree that towered above the small, dying gray scrubs. Turning off the ignition, Ghoul sat back, overtired, and yawned. Wynter looked at him until he opened his eyes and then opened the door. A cool breeze blew through the car before he shut the door behind him. Opening her door, Wynter slung her bag over her shoulders and walked around to the back of the car. Popping open the boot, Ghoul searched through the bags and clothes that littered the boots floor. Finding two small bags, Ghoul closed the boot quietly and walked over to the hard-packed sand desert floor. Sitting down cross-legged, he pulled out the contents of each bag.

Wynter came over and sat near him, but not too close. In one of the bags there was a pot, a tripod, a few branches, a rock, and a flint. In the other bag there was a bottle of water, a packet of something powdery and a wooden spoon. Setting up the branches carefully, Ghoul stood up again and went over to the dying tree, snapping off a few handfuls of the smaller twigs, and bought them back to where Wynter still sat. After gathering some more twigs, small branches, and some dried out grass, he came back and settled down in a cross-legged position again. Arranging the branches in no particular order and placing some of the dried grass into the middle of the pile, Ghoul picked up the flint and the rock and struck them together. A few sparks flew off into the air, but nothing caught on fire.

A few tries later and some re-arranging of the twigs, a small fire was going. It lit up Ghoul's tired face and the dusty car. Placing the tripod over the fire, Ghoul opened the water bottle and poured all the water into the pot. He then set the pot on the tripod and waited. After a few minutes, the water started to boil, and Ghoul took the pot off and set it on the ground. Tearing open the packet with his teeth, he stirred the powder into the hot water. The bitter smell of the coffee reached Wynter and she deeply inhaled. The strong smell filled her nose and made her mouth water. Producing two mugs from one of the bags, Ghoul poured an equal amount into each of the cups before setting the pot on the ground again to cool down. The fire still glowed, the flames sending weird shadows in every direction. Handing a cup to her, Wynter was surprised, and her eyebrows arched. Taking the cup, she bought it to her mouth and the scalding hot coffee swept down her throat. She didn't care if it was hot, it was still good. Ghoul watched her silently over the rim of his cup.

Wynter shivered, despite the coffees heat, and moved closer to the fire. Closing her eyes, she allowed herself to finally think about what had happened. She knew she couldn't go back to Battery City. The place would be crawling with Draculoids looking for her and the killjoys.

Sighing to herself, she realized she would probably never see her family again. Not that they were her family anymore anyway. After the first time they'd all taken the pills, none of them had been the same again. She could complain all she wanted about school, about food, about everything as any normal teenager would, but her parents would look at her with a blank face. There would be the slightest hint of a smile across their faces, but they would either say, _"Everything is perfect,"_ or nothing at all. Wynter would often walk away and go do something else instead of trying to talk to people. It would probably only get her in trouble anyway.

Ghoul moaned and swore sharply, and Wynter snapped back into reality. She downed the last of her coffee and set the cup on the ground.

"What?" She said anxiously. Ghoul's hand was pressed to his shoulder, and Wynter remembered that he'd been shot back at the station.

"Oh my God why didn't you say something?" Wynter pulled her bag off her back and rummaged through it, fishing out a fresh needle and more dissolving thread. Pulling her coat tighter, she shuffled over to where Ghoul was sitting. His eyes saw the large needle but he didn't even flinch. He'd probably seen a few before the bombings, judging by the artwork that covered his arms.

Blood covered Ghoul's hand as he took it off his shoulder. The fabric of his yellow and black shirt had fused with the blood and pus that seeped from the wound. Ghoul grimaced and rolled his eyes, mostly to himself. Wynter took out a pair of small scissors and began to cut around the fabric, before slowly peeling it off the wound. It was an agonizingly slow process, and Ghoul eventually grabbed the fabric and tore it off his shoulder.

He clenched his teeth together, but nodded at Wynter to stitch him up.

Ghoul's wound took longer because he'd been shot twice, from the looks of it, and it was messy. She used up a whole box of tissues just trying to slow the blood flow. Wynter tied off the last knot and looped a long bandage around his shoulder.

Then, sensing something was off, she looked up at Ghoul, who was looking right back at her. They held each other's stares for a moment longer before Ghoul's eyes moved back to the fire.

"What?" Wynter asked, combing her fingers through her hair a few times before she realized that Ghoul's blood was probably on them. She wiped her hands on her dark jeans, and he continued to stare at the fire, ignoring her question.

"You need a name." He said, gently prodding his shoulder before Wynter swatted his hand away.

"Don't touch it or the stitches will come undone." She said, eyebrows knotting. "A name?"

"A killjoy name. You have to have one." Ghoul said firmly.

"Why?" Wynter held her hands out to the fire, and instantly felt its warmth spreading from her palms up her forearms. Ghoul looked up at her, his hazel-green eyes burning into her own.

"You're one of us now." He looked into the fire again, as if this was the most casual conversation in the world. Wynter's heart skipped a beat as she chewed on that. She really was a killjoy now.

On the run, with nowhere to really go.

She knew she would have to change her name, but she was afraid that changing her name would mean leaving her past behind. Some of her past, before the bombings, was important to her. To throw it all away and change her name . . . she couldn't think about it.

"I . . . I can't." She finally said, shaking her head. Ghoul looked confused for a moment before speaking.

"I know it's hard. And I know it won't be easy, but we can't risk BLI finding you. Or Korse, for that matter." Ghoul said quietly. After a few minutes of silence, he began to pack up and stamp out the fire. Wynter gave her cup to him.

"Oh, thanks." He inclined his head towards his shoulder before packing all the gear back into the boot. She knew he was right. It was inevitable that she would need to change her name.

Just not yet.

Two hours later and the car pulled up to a large one level building that had a broken sign saying _Diner _and below that, _Home Style Cooking_. It was nearly dawn, and the Californian desert glowed with the early morning light, even though the sun wasn't out yet. The car pulled to a stop and Ghoul took out the keys.

Everything was silent. Half of the Diner's windows were boarded up with plywood, and on the wood there were posters and spray-can graffiti. A large sticker on the front window read, _Wake up, time to dine_. The front entrance was a pair of glass doors, and the posters that plastered the surrounding walls bore the faces of each of the killjoys, with a large red X slashed across their faces. _Wanted_ was written above each picture. To the right of the entrance was a Better Living Industries Vending machine. A large black and white smiling face painted the front of the machine, and a smaller picture of a ray gun was underneath it.

The Diner was painted a light green and orange color, but had rusty streaks running down from the metal roof. Ghoul got out of the car, and Wynter hurried out too. Jet was awake, and Ghoul opened his door. Wynter opened the opposite door and found Kobra's hand stretched out like he was reaching for the handle. He got out, and then looked back at his brother.

Party's eyelids fluttered but otherwise he remained unconscious. Kobra took him out of the car by hooking his arms under Party's armpits, and Ghoul came round to help carry Party inside the diner. Jet didn't bother to lock the car, and walked over to open the glass doors for Ghoul and Kobra. Inside it was a lot darker, and Wynter could make out the diner's booths and front desk. Walking over to one of the blinds that covered a window, she pulled it up. Light trickled through, murky from the dusty windows. After opening all the blinds, she saw that the only one that remained in the room was Jet.

"Where'd they all go?" She asked, standing in the yellowy light.

"In Party's room." Jet gestured behind him, and Wynter followed his direction. To the left of the front counter, was a hallway that turned right. Walking down it, she found herself in a somewhat large room that held a small TV, a couple of couches and a few small side tables. There was another hall at the opposite end of the room, but it was wider than the first. There were five doors leading off it. Four were closed, but the first one on the left was open. Standing precariously in the doorway, she saw that Kobra and Ghoul had placed Party on a bed, and were now sitting in the only two chairs that occupied the room. Another smaller bed crowded the wall at the end of Party's bed, and it was obviously homemade. Noticing someone in the doorway, Kobra turned.

"You and Jet should go tell Dr. Death Defying that we're back." Kobra said, before turning back towards his brother, elbows on knees. Wynter turned around and found Jet leaning against the back of the largest couch, eyes on her.

"Come on, I think you should meet Dr. Death." He led her down the small hall again and through a waist high swinging door that led behind the counter. Following Jet, Wynter walked past the cash register and the window to the kitchen. There was a door that led to the kitchen, however, and Jet went through it. To their immediate right there was another door, but it had wooden shutters on it, and Jet opened it, then closed it behind Wynter. They were in a room about the same size as the TV room, but this one was different. Hundreds of posters cluttered the walls, demanding attention. An old American flag hung on the back wall behind a small desk. A black widow spider was painted on top of the flag. Beside the desk was a long mirror and a pair of crutches. A figure sat in front of the desk in a wheelchair, which swiveled around as Jet and Wynter entered the room.

"Ahh . . . Jet. Good to see you're okay after all. Knew you guys would make it." The man was about forty, with long black hair and a bandana on. His old, leather jacket was fraying and his mustache and matching beard were groomed. His voice was rough, and he sounded like he was from somewhere south. Beside him, was a man that was about thirty, wearing white and blue polka dot tights, a crop top that had _NOISE_ written on the front, and old fashioned lace-up roller skates on. His tousled, bleached blonde hair was wet, and dripped onto the floor, making small puddles around his roller skates. A mini transmitting studio had been set up on the desk. An old microphone, a set of headphones, a transmitter and a record player were on the desk, demanding space. A small lamp teetered on the edge of the back of the desk. At that moment, a small girl, maybe ten years old, came out of nowhere and wrapped her arms around Jet.

"I thought you'd never come back!" She exclaimed, her fuzzy hair bouncing on her shoulders. Wynter instantly recognized her from the photo that had been taped to the dashboard of the Pontiac.

"Missile! Not making trouble, are you?" Jet had a genuine, huge grin on his face as he bent down to the girl, Missile. She shook her head, smiling.

"Missile? She wouldn't hurt a fly." The man in the roller skates said, before bursting out laughing. Dr. Death laughed too, sharing an inside joke.

"Show Pony, why don't you go get some food for our guest here?" Dr. Death asked the roller skate man before turning to Wynter. Pony was still smiling when he ducked around Wynter and into the kitchen.

"Now, who do we have here?" Dr. Death Defying was the type of person you thought would have gone to AC/DC concerts and worn tight leather jeans decorated with chains before the bombings. He smiled, and Jet stood up. Missile was quiet now, and gazed at Wynter.

"Wynter," she said, extending a hand down to Dr. Death. Taking it, he nodded slowly, thoughtfully. His grip was firm, his hand rough.

"That your birth name?"

"Yeah," She let go of his hand, and his eyes squinted at her, like he was trying to see through a thick fog. Wynter stood awkwardly, waiting for a reply.

"And why is she _here_?" Changing the topic, Dr. Death turned his wheelchair toward Jet, whose black leather jacket had gathered a fine layer of dust.

"It was Ghoul's idea." He paused, scratching his head. Dr. Death's face dawned with a realization that was unknown to Wynter.

"Oh, she helped us out of the station too. And stitched up Kobra." Jet grinned then, obviously impressed. "We couldn't leave her there," He added. _He's covering for Ghoul._ Wynter noticed. Dr. Death nodded again as he took it all in.

"Okay," He paused, "Where are the others?" His thick, black eyebrows knotted in confusion.

"In Party's room." Jet answered, and Dr. Death wheeled out of the transmitting room, with Wynter trailing behind. In Party's room, everything was as it had been before. Ghoul stood up and tried to pretend he was doing something useful rather than just waiting

"What happened?" Dr. Death asked to no one in particular.

"Korse. That's what happened." Ghoul said sarcastically, spitting out the name.

"Kobra?" Dr. Death turned to Kobra, who sat with his elbows on his knees, and his chin resting on his hands. Looking up, Kobra ran a hand through his light and dark blonde streaked hair.

"Oh. I think Korse shot him under the chin, but there's nothing there." Kobra turned back to his brother, who still lay unconscious. Dr. Death mumbled something incomprehensible to himself. A second later, Show Pony skated to a stop in the doorway where Wynter was standing.

"Hey, food's ready." He turned and skated back down the hall and into the diner's main room.

"Finally," Ghoul said, moving past Wynter and down the hall. Glancing back over her shoulder, Wynter saw that Kobra hadn't moved, but everyone else was making their way out of Party's room and down the hall. Wynter followed Dr. Death into the diner. The smell of cooked breakfast reached her nose, and her stomach growled. It was only then that she realized how hungry she was. The large booths that dotted the diner were large enough to fit a small army, so everyone could sit around one table. Wynter sat next to Jet.

Show Pony skated to a halt in front of the table and placed several trays down then left to get plates and forks. There was bacon, eggs, toast and real _marmalade_. A lot of the delicacies that existed before the bombings weren't made anymore, so no one could enjoy them.

"Marmalade?" Wynter raised her eyebrows, a small smile spreading across her face.

"Yeah, we know a guy," Ghoul's lips twitched into a small smile as he watched her spoon marmalade onto her toast. Biting into it, Wynter's mouth was filled with explosions of different flavors. At that time, Show Pony came back with some napkins.

"Couldn't wait, huh?" He flicked his hair out of his eyes, which Wynter noticed were light blue. They stood out against his pale skin.

"Mmmm," Wynter mumbled, her mouth full. Missile giggled, and even Dr. Death grinned. Finishing her mouthful, Wynter said, "This is great. Actually, though. I haven't had marmalade since I was little." Wynter spooned scrambled eggs and bacon onto her plate. This was probably the best meal she'd had in a long time. Her parents never cooked anymore, and everyone in the city had pre-cooked, pre-packaged meals.

They were possibly the worst thing to ever happen to food.

After finishing breakfast, they all lounged around the booth, making small talk. Wynter sat quietly, listening to everyone's conversations.

"Wynter," It was a minute before Wynter noticed someone was talking to her.

"Huh? Yeah?" She looked up and saw Dr. Death looking at her, a quizzical expression on his aged face.

"You wanna wash up?"

"Oh. Yeah." Wynter raked her hand through her blonde hair, and particles of sand skittered to the floor. She followed Dr. Death back down the hall to the TV room, and noticed a door that she could've sworn wasn't there before.

"Everything you need should be in there, towels, soap, shampoo." Dr. Death left her in front of the door and then wheeled over to Party's room. Opening the door, Wynter stepped into a surprisingly large bathroom. The sink and toilet were to her right, and the whole left wall was in an enclosed glass area. Behind the glass door there was a double shower, with two shower heads, and a shelf on each side that held shampoo, conditioner, soap, and a comb.

She locked the door behind her and stood before the shower nozzle for a full minute trying to figure out how to turn it on. Washing her dirty hair, Wynter stood under the powerful, hot water for a long time before finally getting out. Picking up her filthy clothes, she grimaced. She was so clean, and didn't really want to wear the clothes again until they were washed. Turning around, she noticed a thin slot in the door, wide enough to pass your hand through. It had a white, plastic flap that moved back and forth when she touched it. Bending down, Wynter saw a pile of clothes on the floor under the slot. Picking them up, she put them on.

Looking in the full length mirror behind the bathroom door, Wynter saw that the clothes fit her perfectly. She was wearing black jeans, a black woman's shirt that had _Nirvana_ written across the front of it, with a crooked yellow smiley face drawn beneath it. There was an army green denim jacket that she put on over the shirt. Patches decorated it – the old American flag was the only one she recognized. The other patches were of bands that she'd never heard of before. Or at least she thought they were bands. Slipping on her converse and the leather bracelet she always wore, Wynter rolled her old clothes up into a ball and unlocked the bathroom door. Jet was still on the red couch in front of the TV, watching something.

"They fit?" Jet nodded towards the new clothes Wynter wore.

"Yeah, actually. Perfectly." Wynter smiled.

"Oh, Ghoul's gone outside by the way. And Kobra's still in Party's room." Jet paused for a minute, watching something on the screen, before continuing. "But don't go into the transmitting room, Dr. D's busy." Wynter nodded and set her clothes on the couch.

"Oh, wait! Sorry, I forgot. You have a room to stay in; it's the second one on the right." Jet smiled up at her, and Wynter returned the smile, picking her clothes up again and heading towards . Opening the door, she saw the room had a single bed, a side dresser with empty drawers and a small matching desk and chair. Hanging her clothes on the back of the chair, Wynter headed outside. After opening the front doors, she realized she didn't know where exactly she was going. She thought she just needed to think about everything that had happened, but she wasn't so sure that was true. Heading right, Wynter circled the whole diner. It was unexpectedly large, and took her a few minutes to walk all around. It was basically the same on every outer wall – white, aged weatherboards that had gathered dust and spider webs. When she was nearly about to turn the second to last corner Wynter heard something. Ever since she was small, she had excellent hearing. There was no breeze today, which made everything sound louder. Someone was behind the corner, probably sitting down. She could hear them breathing. Turning the corner, Wynter spotted Ghoul sitting against the wall a few meters down. Looking up, he saw her and looked surprised.

"Hey," He said.

"Hi," Wynter walked over slowly then sat near him. She didn't want to sit too close or too far away though, because she barely knew Ghoul at all, it seemed. Closing her eyes against the quiet, Wynter listened to the faint rustle of the nearby scrubs and the hiss of the small tree branches in the wind. They sat there quietly for a while, enjoying the peacefulness, before Ghoul stretched out his legs and yawned. The sun shone down from behind them, and cast shadows so that they were in the shade.

"So who are you now?" Ghoul asked, turning towards her.

"What?" Wynter asked.

"Your killjoy name. You gotta have one."

"I don't know yet." Wynter said playing with part of her hair that hadn't dried fully yet.

"Well, what do you like?" Ghoul started, now fully facing her, his legs crossed. His black hair fell across his face and swayed in the faint breeze that had picked up.

"I don't know. I've been stuck in Battery City. There's nothing to really like." She admitted, shrugging her shoulders. Ghoul paused, thinking.

"What're you like?"

"What am I like?" Wynter hesitated, thinking about it. "I guess I can be sarcastic. When no one really pays attention to what you're saying, you can talk about basically anything." Ghoul's lips twitched to the side as he thought. After a few minutes, his eyes became alight with an idea.

"Cynical. It needs cynical in it."

"It took you that long to come up with that?" Wynter's eyebrows rose. Ghoul leant in, studying her eyes quietly. Leaning back, Wynter eyed Ghoul. "What?"

"Sapphire. Cynical Sapphire." He said, content with his answer. Leaning back on his hands, he tilted his head up towards the sunshine that now was almost in the middle of the sky.

"_Cynical Sapphire_?" She questioned.

"Yeah." Ghoul's eyes remained closed, and a hint of a smile was on his lips. "You have blue eyes." He stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Wynter sighed, leaning back to bask in the sun herself.

"I don't know, it doesn't seem very . . . _me_."

"What?" Ghoul's eyes cracked open, and he peered at her.

"What about . . . Cynical Sunshine?" Wynter's hair fanned around her in the breeze that had picked up quite a bit. Dust flitted across her jeans, making them look like they had splattered paint all over them.

"Cynical Sunshine? Seriously?" Ghoul tilted his head to the side, his face tainted with a skeptical expression.

"Yeah, I like the sun." Wynter shrugged. A minute passed before either of them spoke.

"I still like my idea better." Ghoul said, ending the conversation. Wynter's lips twitched as she suppressed a smile.

"Cynical Sapphire . . ." She said slowly, sounding it out. Ghoul's eyes cracked open again, and Wynter looked away, out over the barren desert. "I don't know. I mean, I like it," Wynter started to say, but was lost for words.

"But . . . ?" Ghoul prompted, his eyes now fully open. He sat up straighter, crossing one leg over the other. Wynter looked down. The sand swirled around like water, its color now bright in the morning sun. Wynter sat forward too, crossing her legs. Leaning forward, she played with the faded laces on her shoes, winding them around her fingers.

"If I have a name, I have to leave everything behind." Ghoul looked like he was about to interrupt, so Wynter held up a hand. "I know, I know. It's for my safety, ya-de-ya. But . . ." Wynter shook her head. Ghoul waited patiently for her to continue.

"Who were you before all of this?" Wynter changed the topic quickly, and looked back up to study Ghoul. Chewing on his lip, he debated whether or not Wynter could be trusted with what he was about to tell her, but decided he might as well tell her.

"Who was I? I was in a band." Ghoul simply stated, brushing his hair out of his eyes.

"I meant your name. Your real name." Wynter half rolled her eyes, "What band?"

"Oh." Ghoul paused before continuing. "Frank. I was Frank. The band? My Chemical Romance, but you probably haven't heard of them before."

"Frank . . ." Wynter said, nodding to herself. "I don't think I've heard of My Chemical Romance before. I was only . . . seven when the bombings started, so I don't remember a lot about the old world."

"Seven? Yeah, then you wouldn't know who we were."

"Were? What happened?" She leant forward, listening.

"We . . . after everything went downhill, it was pretty hard to start recording again, so we stopped producing albums." He sounded like he regretted that decision, but didn't say anything else about it. A few minutes of peace passed between them, and Wynter listened to the faint rustling of the leaves and sand. Sighing, Wynter stood up and brushed the sand off her new jeans, stretching.

"I should probably go back," She started, and Ghoul looked up.

"Why?"

"I . . ." Biting the inside of her mouth, Wynter laughed quietly.

"What's so funny?"

"I don't know. I don't belong here. There's really nothing waiting inside there," Wynter gestured to the diner, "that I need to get back to." Despite what she said, she circled around Ghoul, who remained sitting. Sighing loudly, she asked, "Are you coming?"

"Might as well." He stood up, brushing the sand off himself too. Following her back inside, Ghoul's eyes took a minute to adjust to the darker diner. Flicking the lights on, Wynter spun around.

"The lights work?" Wynter raised her eyebrows, then turned back towards the hall, heading down it. "Of course they do." She said, mostly to herself.

Making their way to Party's room, Ghoul and Wynter stopped outside the door.

"You should eat," Ghoul said to Kobra, who hadn't moved since Wynter had left. Kobra shrugged, his eyes still on Party. His red hair splayed around his like a ring of fire on the flat pillows. The bruise under his chin was a purple-red, but not as dark as it would normally be. The gel Wynter had put there earlier must have worked.

"Kobra." Ghoul went to stand in front of Kobra, who finally looked up. He flicked his hair away from his face and sat back in the chair. Tension filled the room, but after a minute it disappeared as Kobra stood up and walked past Wynter and down the hall towards the diner. Ghoul shook his head but followed Kobra down the hall. Standing uneasily in Party's doorway, she turned away and went to sit on the empty couch near Jet. On TV was an old recording of an American football match. Jet was leaning forward, eyes glued to the TV. Noticing she was there, his eyes flicked towards her, then back to the TV.

"Hey, where'd you get to?"

"I was talking to Ghoul outside." Wynter explained, watching as guys on the screen passed a ball around and seemed to be getting nowhere with it. Jet nodded, his eyes still on the game.

After trying to watch the game but easily becoming uninterested, Wynter stood up and went to the diner. Ghoul was nowhere in sight, but Kobra was sitting alone in one of the booths. Unsure of whether she should go sit down with him, Kobra's eyes glanced up at her, his mouth full of the reheated breakfast.

"Hey," He began, trying to speak through bacon and eggs. He inclined his head toward the opposite seat at the booth, and Wynter slid into it. The red leather seats had faded from a brilliant color into something duller. Leaning on her elbows, she gazed out the dusty window at the sandy landscape.

"Thanks for stitching me up back there."

"No problem." Wynter said, not knowing what else she could say to someone whose brother was practically in a coma. Along with that, she'd always been awkward around people, but mostly because she really had to watch what she said.

"When will he be better?" Kobra asked after a few minutes.

"Uh . . . soon, I should think." Seeing Kobra hang his head, she added, "You've done all you can."

"That's it, though. I haven't done _anything_!" He suddenly slammed his fist on the table, but it was only halfheartedly. The table vibrated, and Wynter went still as he continued. "I lay back there on the floor waiting for _you_ to stitch me up when we could've been helping _him_." Kobra took a deep breath, gritting his teeth. Brushing his hair away in frustration, his eyebrows knitted together.

"Sorry," He said, sighing. Wynter waited to see if he was going to say anything else, but he didn't. Instead he got up and took his plate to the counter, then went back to Party's room. Biting her lip, Wynter stood up. Shoving her hands in her back pockets, she walked around the diner before ending up at the door to Dr. Death's radio room.

" . . . nine three six, eight four . . ." She heard him rattle off a list of numbers before pausing. Then, he spoke again. Through the door, Dr. Death's voice was muffled, so Wynter could only make out some of the words.

"The lights are out and the party's over. It's time for me, Doctor D, to start running and say goodbye for a little while." He laughed ironically, and Wynter grinned too. Crossing her arms, she sat on the end of a stool that stood outside the door. Dr. Death said something else, but she couldn't hear it.

". . . so remember, even if you're dusted, you may be gone." He paused dramatically, "But out here in the desert, your shadow lives on without you. This is Dr. Death Defying, signing off." A flick of a switch later and he said, "For now."

A track started to play quietly, and Wynter turned away.


	4. Chapter Three

3

"Wynter? Wynter!" Kobra started to yell for her, and she turned from the window and ran down the hall, skidding around the corner. Coming to an abrupt stop outside Party's room, Wynter's heart raced. For one of the killjoys to be calling for _her_ was in itself an exciting moment.

"What?" Then she saw Party's eyelids flicker, then open. Kobra bent down beside Party, grinning. Party moaned, and turned his head to the side. He tried to say something, but it came out as a mumble. Kobra grinned, relief flooding his features. Party bought his hand up to his forehead and wiped away the thin sheen of sweat that had formed. Opening his eyes for good this time, he turned to Kobra and smiled, but it faltered.

"What . . . what . . ." He started, but it was mumbled again. Clearing his throat, Party spoke. "What did I do . . . this time . . . ?" At that, Kobra grinned and patted Party on the shoulder.

"Good to have you back. Took your time though,"

"Actually, it hasn't even been 24 hours . . ." Wynter began, but trailed off when she saw how relieved Kobra was. Party's glazed-over eyes glanced towards her, and he blinked hard. He tried to sit up but a wave of nausea washed over him and he fell back on the pillow.

"You probably shouldn't move for a while, you got hit pretty badly." Wynter moved to sit on the smaller bed that stood separate to Party's bed and dug into her pocket. Handing him two white pills, he took them, eyeing them carefully much the same way all the other killjoys had, but swallowed them dry anyway. He cringed, sticking his tongue out and shaking his head.

Party sat up against the wall, his head resting on it.

"Oh, this is Wynter," Kobra gestured towards her. "She saved us back there." Kobra smiled, and it was probably the most genuine smile she'd seen from him so far.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Party . . . but you knew that." It was nearly the same response she got from Ghoul when she'd met him. Wynter nodded, suddenly shy, but she smiled back. Party looked at her shirt and his eyes widened, and he smirked. Ghoul and Ray appeared at the door then, and the others came in to view behind them.

"Finally, man. I thought I was going to have to sell all your stuff!" Ghoul joked, stepping into the room. He grinned widely, as did Ray.

"At last, he wakes up," Ray said dramatically, and everyone in the room burst into laughter. After a moment, Wynter joined in. Stepping aside, Dr. Death wheeled in.

"Nearly got ya-self ghosted back there Party," Dr. Death said, raising his eyebrows. "Lucky you this tumble-weed here was watchin' you all." Dr. Death's heavy southern voice bellowed in a low tone, but he smiled too. His eyes were full of memories and history, and the laugh and frown lines on his face were clear.

"Thanks," Party looked to Wynter, his face honest. Before he could carry on, Missile Kid ran into the room, her face alight.

"Party!" She yelled in delight, and jumped onto the bed. He hugged her for a long time, and grinned so widely that he was probably going to get muscle strain in his cheeks. Leaning back from the hug, Missile's face was bright and she smiled excitedly. It was then that Wynter got up and made an excuse to leave. Something about getting food for Party. When she left the room, she heaved out a long sigh. Rubbing her tired eyes, she went to the kitchen. She stood at the door, looking for the pantry. Spotting it, she headed over. It was a massive walk in cupboard at the far side of the room, opposite the transmission room's door. In the pantry there were cans upon cans of food, and the small MRE packets that BL/Ind supplied to people. There were also a few small plastic tanks full of clean water. Spotting some canned spaghetti, Wynter picked it up and went to find a can opener. Five minutes later, after microwaving the spaghetti, she returned to Party's room. Dr. Death, Show Pony and Jet had left. She handed the bowl to Party, who was becoming more and more talkative. Seeing the bowl, he shook his head. Wynter's quizzical expression made Ghoul and Kobra turn to her.

"We should all eat out there." Party nodded towards where the diner was. Mumbling an "Ok", Wynter took the food and placed it on one of the tables, then went back to the kitchen to dish up more spaghetti. A moment later, the others entered the room, and Party and Kobra sat down. Seeing her through the kitchen window, Ghoul came over.

"Here, let me do that." He said, and lifted the hot spaghetti cans out of the microwave before tipping them into bowls. They took two each and went to sit at the table. Jet came in a moment later and sat with them. Missile had disappeared. Everyone dug in right away, including Wynter. She was hungry and hadn't realized it before. Breakfast had been a little over four hours ago. Everyone finished in a few minutes, and sat around talking, like at breakfast. Wynter tuned out and played with the frayed ends of her jacket.

". . . right?" Part of the conversation made Wynter look up, and all eyes were on her. Her own eyes widened.

"What?" She said, looking at each face.

"No," Ghoul said to Party, shaking his head. There was danger in his eyes, like that of a snake.

"But she looks so much like how Lily–" Party started, but Ghoul's voice, even though it was quiet, made Party stop in mid-sentence.

"Don't. Don't bring them up. You know that." Tension filled the room, and Wynter froze, along with Jet and Kobra.

"I was just saying that–"

"No! You can't just say anything, okay? You . . . you _know_ why. Don't be bloody stupid!" Ghoul yelled at Party, whose eyes widened with shock, then with fury.

"You can't yell at everyone who even mentions their names! We were friends with her too, and we miss her a lot." Party poked his finger at Ghoul's chest, "_Your _family wasn't the only one in that car, okay? We all lost people that day! So you–"

"I have every right to be mad! So does Jet, but he's not me, okay?" Ghoul clenched his fists hard on the table, his knuckles turning white. "But it's not okay." Ghoul paused, taking an angry breath. "_I'm_ not okay. But we don't have to do anything just because _you_ say so!" Ghoul pushed his way past Jet and stormed outside, and silence fell. Wynter could hear her heartbeat in her ears.

"I'm gonna go wash up." She said, and took some of the bowls. A moment later Kobra joined her, and they went to wash them in the kitchen. Jet left to go back to the TV room, but Party slumped down in the booth and closed his eyes.

When they tipped the dishes sideways to dry, Wynter dried her own hands and leant back against the kitchen bench. Kobra unplugged the sink, and the water washed away.

"What did I miss?" Wynter asked him quietly, and Kobra looked up, confused. "Like, before it got like that," She tilted her head towards where Party still sat.

"Oh," Kobra shook his head. "Nothing really. Party just thinks you look like how . . . how someone Ghoul used to know would look now." He looked to the ground, shifting uncomfortably.

"Oh?" Wynter raised her eyebrows slightly. Kobra said nothing, and Wynter sighed. "Never mind. It's none of my business anyway." Wynter left the kitchen and went to her room. Collapsing on the bed, she let out a long sigh, then rolled over.

As soon as she closed her eyes, she drifted into a deep sleep.

A soft knock woke Wynter, and she moaned and moved over.

"It's Jet, open up." Jet spoke quietly, but she heard him through the door. Rubbing her eyes, she got out of bed and opened the door. He looked tired, small circles forming under his eyes.

"Hey, what's up?" She said, raking her fingers through her knotted hair.

"Party wants to see you," Jet said, and nodded towards Party's room. Wynter looked up at Jet, then closed the door behind her and headed for Party's room.

"Just go right in." Jet said, seeing Wynter hold her hand up to the door to knock. Nodding, she opened the door and found Party sitting with his back to the wall, reading a comic.

"Hi," He began as Wynter closed the door and sat on the chair next to his bed.

"Hey," She said, uncertain what he'd called her in here for. Leaning back against the chair, Wynter's eyes flicked to the window, and she noticed the sun was just about to set.

She'd slept most of the day.

"So, Wynter, yeah?" Party put the comic down and brushed his bright hair out of his eyes.

"That's me." She replied.

"And you saved me? Or, helped save me?" He settled back against the wall, crossing his feet.

"I guess. It was mostly the medicine and stuff I gave you, but yeah." She shrugged modestly. Party nodded slowly, and then winced, thinking better of it. Wynter was going to offer him more of the pills she'd taken from the station, but her bag was still in her room. She bit her lip awkwardly, not sure what else to say.

"Sorry about before." Party started, "It's just . . . weird. I don't really know." He struggled to find the right words.

"Ever since the bombings, me and Ghoul . . . something changed, you know?" He looked at her, expecting her to know the answer. Wynter shrugged then nodded slightly. She waited patiently for him to continue, but Party was lost in his own thoughts.

"So, why did you want to see me?" She asked, and he snapped out of his haze.

"Oh, yeah. You're one of us now, you realize that, right?"

"I guess so. But if I'm a Killjoy now . . . where am I going to go?"

"Stay here. Obviously." Party snickered, and his hair fell in his eyes again. Wynter bit her lip again and looked at the ground.

"I can't really. You guys," She gestured at Party, "Clearly are like family, and I don't want to –"

"Are you kidding me?" Party's face was incredulous. "You saved me, and everyone else at the station. The least we can do is to let you stay here." Party smacked his hand down on the bed. "So you're staying here." He said, an air of finality hanging in the room. Wynter was taken aback, and then smiled.

"You sure? I mean –" She stopped short when she saw Party look up at her from under his long eyelashes. Instead, she nodded, and smiled genuinely. Before either of them could continue, the door opened.

"Look, man. About before –" Ghoul entered, and then looked up from the ground, noticing Wynter. Everyone in the room was quiet, and then embarrassment flittered across Ghoul's features.

"Sorry, I didn't . . ." Ghoul said, looking at Wynter. He turned away and hurried out the door. Wynter looked to Party, who shrugged.

She got up and ran to follow Ghoul out of the room. When she reached him, he was nearly out the diner's side door.

"Wait," She said, her hand on his shoulder. Ghoul spun around, surprised. "It wasn't really anything, you should go back and talk to him." Wynter said, her eyes widening. Ghoul bit the inside of his cheek, then shook his head.

"Dunno what I was thinking. I shouldn't have to apologize to _him_." Ghoul spat the last word, his features angry again. Wynter rolled her eyes and looked skeptically at him.

"Go talk to him," She said quietly but sternly, and Ghoul stopped making a nuisance of himself and actually listened to her. Wynter watched him walk back to the hall, and he half turned as he got there, but thought better of it and instead kept walking.

She went to the diner's front door and opened it. A small gust of wind entered the diner, sending a few bits of sand skittering across the lino floor. She walked across the road and stood on the hard packed soil. It was dry and cracked, and sand blew across it from about a mile away, where the dirt became sand. She walked until she was fifty meters away from the diner, then she stopped and looked back. The place looked small compared to the vastness of the Californian desert. The sun was starting to set in front of the diner, and Wynter let her eyes adjust to the strange light as she stopped walking. Long shadows clawed their way out from underneath the bushes and tufts of grass, almost like they were hands that were trying to reach out to Wynter before she could run away.

After a while, the sun disappeared behind the horizon and the desert darkened. Wynter shivered as the temperature dropped. She thought again about how she'd managed to get herself into this mess, and then wondered if she would ever see her family again. Her sisters would probably never really get to know her.

Hell, they wouldn't remember her soon, they were only eight. And as long as her parents were under BLI's control . . . she couldn't see them again. It would be risking her safety, but wasn't that okay? To be able to see her family again, even if she was taken away and re-educated? It couldn't be that hard to slink past the Battery City guards, especially since there weren't that many. And Wynter had friends back home, even if they weren't themselves.

"Why?" She screamed in the wind, and her voice drifted. "Why _me_? I don't . . ." Her shoulders hitched with a sob. "What did _I_ do?" She hissed at the dark sky, swallowing the tears that threatened to spill over. Kicking at the sand, Wynter sat down on her heels and tried to calm down. Being angry at the sky wasn't going to help. But the _Fabulous Killjoys_ . . . this was _their_ job. To stop BLI. They'd been at it from the beginning, and that was nearly ten years ago. Why hadn't they stopped everyone from taking the pills in the first place? It's what they did! The killjoys were meant to save people, but everything had still happened the way BLI wanted it to. More importantly, though, they hadn't stopped Korse, BL/Ind's 'leader'. Wynter clenched her teeth, grinding them together.

She wanted to go home.

Even if home was full of mind controlled freaks. She still belonged there.

"Wynter?" A voice made her jump to her feet and spin around. Ghoul was standing there.

"Oh. Ghoul." Wynter hastily rubbed at the hot angry tears that had pooled in her eyes. Ghoul's expression turned from confusion to worry in a second.

"What's wrong?" He asked, knowing better than to ask if she was okay. He crossed the distance between them.

"Nothing." She crossed her arms defensively and looked at the ground. Ghoul grunted, and half rolled his eyes.

"Something's up. And it's cold, so let's head –"

"I'm not going back there." She said sternly, sitting cross legged on the ground. She knew she was being irrational and acting like a stubborn five year old, but Wynter was honestly not in the mood. Instead of leaving like Wynter wanted him to, Ghoul did the opposite. He sat next to her and leaned back, gazing at the desert. His face was pale in the early moonlight, but some of the sun's last rays tinged his hair yellow and black.

They sat like that until Wynter couldn't stand the silence.

"How did you know I was here?" She asked, refusing to face him. At least she'd stopped crying though.

"I heard you. And where else is there to go?" He shrugged his shoulders then, and pulled his knees up, wrapping his arms around them.

"Good point."

Ghoul said nothing to that, and as the minutes ticked away, the land grew dark, dimly lit by the blue white glow from the moon. Wynter turned her head to the side, and looked at Ghoul. His eyelids were closed, his left cheek resting against his knees. Ghoul's eyes flickered underneath his lids, and his lashes shuddered.

"It's just hard admitting to what I'm doing. What I've done."

"You haven't done anything wrong. Exactly the opposite, actually." He said without opening his eyes, as if it were, again, the most casual conversation in the world.

"I left my family and I'm rebelling against the company that basically rules the world." Wynter stated sharply, and Ghoul's head perked up. Studying her features in the moonlight, he shook his head.

"Shit happens." He said, a lopsided smile dancing across his face. Wynter's lips twitched at that, and she hid a smile.

"See?" Ghoul saw the smile, and laughed. "It's not that bad yet. You're only . . . what? Sixteen?"

"Yeah . . ."

"If you think it's bad now," He paused dramatically, "Then you're in for the ride of your life."

Wynter said nothing, but flicked her hair out of her eyes and faced him. Ghoul had turned back to the diner, and was watching as a few lights were switched on inside. Wynter sighed as he stood up, extending a hand to her. Taking it, she got up and walked back to the diner with Ghoul.

The main room was much warmer that it had been outside, and Wynter shed her jacket, leaving it on the back of a lone chair. The three other killjoys and Missile Kid were lounging around in one of the booths, and Ghoul slid into the chair beside Kobra. After a moment's hesitation, and a reassuring look from Ghoul, Wynter sat with them.

Jet burst into laughter and everyone joined in, including Wynter. It was contagious. Her bad mood had completely disappeared and she was grateful to be inside where it was warm. After a hot dinner, Show Pony came out of the kitchen with two trays. Steaming mugs of hot chocolate were on them, and everybody greedily reached out for a cup. The guys downed their drinks pretty fast, and Party said something Wynter couldn't make out and Ghoul almost sprayed all his hot chocolate over the table. The two of them were in fits of laughter before long, but Wynter sensed something off about it.

Almost like when something's funny, but you don't really feel like laughing.

She shrugged it off though, reveling in the peace between the killjoys. An hour passed, and Show Pony cleaned up all their dishes, and even when Wynter insisted on helping, he waved her off and smiled. She thought that because everyone was suddenly in such a good mood tonight, that Pony didn't really mind doing the dishes. Wynter sat back again and gazed out at the dark desert, but quickly tuned back in to the conversation when she was sick of staring into nothing. She knew it was getting late, and that she was still tired. Everyone else must be even more tired than her, especially Ghoul. She didn't think he'd slept since the raid last night.

As if to prove a point, Missile let off a loud yawn that made everyone giggle in such a girlish way that Wynter herself burst out laughing. It was such a pointless thing to laugh at, but all the killjoys had sounded like little girls.

Everyone started laughing for real, then, and even Pony grabbed a chair and joined in. When Wynter finally controlled herself, everyone else was still laughing or chatting, and she saw Ghoul look at her from the corner of his eye, with almost a look of approval on his face. Wynter grinned and listened to everyone talk for a while.

"Missile, shouldn't you be in bed?" Party said, and everyone looked towards him. Missile yawned again, and nodded sleepily. Her eyelids were starting to droop, and even her frizzy hair seemed worn out. Party clambered over Jet and lifted Missile from the booth, then took her down the hall. Wynter guessed that the small bed in Party's room was Missile's. They both seemed close, despite their age difference.

"Hey, Wynter, do you know whose shirt that was?" Jet nodded towards the Nirvana shirt she was wearing. Wynter shook her head, leaning her elbows on the table.

"It was Lindsey's." Jet said dramatically. Wynter thought that him, Ghoul and Kobra would burst out laughing because of his tone, but they all looked dead serious.

"Who's Lindsey?" Wynter looked around, confused. Jet leaned in and lowered his voice.

"Party's wife." Jet said, and Kobra bit his lip, looking towards the hall, expecting Party to come through any second.

"Oh . . ." Wynter stopped short of what she was saying, realizing that she hadn't seen or heard of Lindsey before. She immediately assumed the worse.

"It's not like that," Kobra interjected, leaning forward as well. "We just don't know . . . what happened." The mood in the room had become solemn, but Wynter was still immensely confused. At that moment, though, Party came back into the room and slouched down between Kobra and Jet.

"So we should probably all get some sleep now, right?" Party said, flicking his red hair out of his eyes.

"You need to especially. And so do you," Wynter looked at Ghoul. He'd been up more than 24 hours, and was looking real tired. They all mumbled and Wynter grinned as they slunk off to their rooms. Yawning, she followed them and turned off the lights to the diner on her way out. Party opened his door quietly and closed it, and Ghoul mumbled a goodnight before heading to his room.

Jet didn't even close his door, but collapsed on his bed and was out like a light. Wynter paused before going to bed though, and so did Kobra.

"Hey, wait." Kobra said, turning towards her.

"What?" She asked sleepily, yawning.

Kobra went into her room and sat on the bed. He gestured for her to sit next to him. Confused yet again, Wynter followed Kobra, closing the door quietly behind her. She was going to switch the light on but her room was strangely bright from the moon. Shrugging, she sat next to Kobra who had scooted to sit with his back to the wall.

"Right. There are a couple of things you need to know if you're staying with us." Kobra said, looking at her.

"What? I can't stay–" She tried to argue, but he interrupted.

"Look, I know how this is gonna go down. After being stuck with these guys for years, you get to know their habits." He said, slightly smirking. Wynter yawned again and shrugged her shoulders.

"Okay . . . well, we were all friends before any of this. Jet, Party, Ghoul and I. And we had a band."

"Yeah, Ghoul told me about that." Wynter said, bringing her knees up to her chin.

"We were a pretty awesome band too," Kobra laughed at that. She noticed that when he laughed he took great care to try not showing his teeth. Her eyebrows wove together at this strange thought, but she didn't say anything.

"Then all this stuff happened and it was like . . . wow. We had nowhere to live, nowhere to go. We went through a lot. And I can't . . . I can't tell you a lot of what happened. Not now, anyway. But tones of crazy stuff happened and then it was just us four. We realized we needed to try to get help from people, to get to a safe place where the raiders and all of them couldn't get at us." Kobra stopped, deep in thought, and probably having flash backs.

"Things went wrong. Really wrong. And we all lost people, but who hasn't? To us though, Better Living was something to fight. We needed it. We couldn't stand to just . . . just _sit_ there and watch this happen. And that's kind of where this all began." Kobra stopped again, biting his lip.

Wynter nodded slowly, taking it all in.

"What about you?" He asked, and the question hung in the air. Wynter explained that she'd lost family and friends, but wasn't really old enough to remember them. She personally didn't have anything against BLI until now, when it seemed like she had to become a killjoy.

"How come . . ." Wynter paused, then rephrased the question, "What about Lindsey? Who is she?"

"She . . . um . . . it's kind of a long story actually, and Party will be pissed if I tell you. Not that he'd know, but I can't right now." Kobra swallowed audibly, and Wynter awkwardly patted his arm.

"She was kidnapped." She said flatly. Kobra looked up at her, his eyes wide. She was _right_?

"Yes. I . . . I can't remember it that well because everything happened at once and _so_ many things went wrong and so much crap went down that night. But they got her."

"That's . . . insane." There weren't even words to describe what that must have been like.

"And as they drove away from the crash site, Party screamed and swore that he would never stop looking for her, that he would never give up." Kobra paused and closed his eyes. Wynter didn't bother to ask about what he meant by 'crash site'. Now wasn't the time or place to go asking something like that.

"He hasn't yet." Wynter said reassuringly. They sat in silence for a while, listening to Jet toss and turn in his sleep and listening to the sand swirl around outside. Wynter couldn't even begin to imagine what Party must have felt, or be feeling. After what Kobra told her, she knew that no one in this world could hate BLI as much as Party did.

It was heart-breaking and comforting at the same time that he wouldn't give up on his wife, no matter what.

"I should probably go, you look like you need some sleep." Kobra stood up and stretched, and Wynter got up too.

"Thanks for telling me. No, really." She said as he left the room. Kobra nodded, his eyes full of untold stories, and he went to his room and closed the door behind him.

Wynter shut her door then, and slumped onto her bed, staring at the ceiling.

_ Poor Party_ she thought as she drifted off into a deep sleep.


	5. Chapter Four

4

"Rosie!" Nora yelled, and a little girl came skidding to a stop before her.

"Yes mama?" She asked, her small brown curls bouncing on her shoulders. She stared up at her mother with wide eyes and an innocent smile.

"What have I told you about running in the apartment?" Nora said angrily, a frustrated look on her face.

"Sorry," Rosie said quietly, twiddling her thumbs. "Me and Amber were just-"

"No, no. You . . ." Vertigo suddenly hit Nora like a tsunami wave, and she stumbled over to the dining room table and gripped it. Her knuckles turned white and her breathing became labored. Rosie skipped over to stand beside Nora, her face unfazed.

"You go wash up for dinner and . . . and tell your sister to clean up as well." Rosie went away, and Nora stood up. Keeping low, she darted towards the kitchen and tipped one of the many small white bottles that filled the food cupboard onto her hand. Two perfectly round, white pills came out. She swallowed them and started to look for ingredients for dinner when another wave washed over her – but this time it was a wave of calm. Nora knew somewhere in the back of her mind that the wave of dizziness she had experienced was from withdrawal of the BLI pills.

Nora felt her thoughts slipping away when a loud knock on the door sounded. She went to open it and found three men in white suits with masks on. A blank smiling face was decorated on each mask, and the Better Living Industries logo was plastered underneath. Nora's eyes didn't even flick to the weapons they each held.

"Mrs. Gray?" One of the men asked, but she couldn't tell who said it.

"Yes?" Nora's voice had taken on a higher tone, and her words came out like a sigh rather than actual words.

"May we please speak to your daughter?" One of the guards asked, stepping past Nora into the white apartment.

"I'll go . . . go get her." She said, closing the door behind the men, who instantly made themselves at home by studying the photos on the walls and the furniture.

Nora walked down the hall, searching each room with a quick glance.

"Girls?" She yelled softly, and Rosie and Amber ran down the hall to their mother. They stood before her, side by side, and were identical at first sight.

"Where's the other one?" She asked, her mind slipping from her fingers and she tried to think straight.

"She went out before mom," Amber said, pushing past Rosie to stand in front of Nora.

"Oh . . . okay." She said, then took each girl's hand in her own and led them down the hall to where the guards were. They all turned and seemed to eye both girls, before craning their heads to look past Nora.

"I believe it's . . . Wynter? Where is she, miss?" One of the guards asked, looking down at the papers on his clipboard.

"Oh . . . she went out before." Nora said, copying what Amber had told her. Children take doses as high as adults had to, so Amber and Rosie were more aware of what was going on than Nora was.

"Hmmm . . ." The guard said, writing something down on his clipboard.

"Clearly you are not fit to talk, Mrs. Gray." One of the guards said, inclining his head towards her. "No, no. I'm quite-"

"Where is your husband, miss?" The guard asked sternly, interrupting Nora. Amber and Jamie milled around Nora's feet.

"He should be home by now." Nora said calmly, and sat down on one of the sofas. Her back was impeccably straight and her wavy hair fanned out around her shoulders. Just at that minute, another man walked through the door, but he was in a suit.

"Here he is," Nora started to say, and the man's eyes flicked slowly from the first guard to the second to the third.

"Why are they here, sweetheart?" He asked, his voice slightly slurred.

"They wanted to see the other one." Nora tilted her head to where Amber and Jamie stood.

"Daddy!" Jamie yelled, and ran over to hug her father. The guards exchanged a few looks with each other before moving in on the situation.

"Mr. Gray? Mr. John Gray?" One of the guards asked, walking over to where the man stood.

"Yes?" John said, unwinding Jamie's arms from his hips and placing his work bag on the coffee table.

"I'm afraid we are going to have to take you into custody, your daughter is missing-" The guard started, but stepped back as John tried to swing his arm around fast enough to strike the guard's head. John's limbs were stiff because of the pills though, and he missed. His thoughts started to clear slightly though, so he could speak a little easier, but his memory was still muddled up.

"Are you blind? My daughter is right-" John stopped and looked down at Jamie, then at Amber, who had both become very still. John's eyes widened and he realized that he had more than one daughter. He was going insane. The pills . . . after a while, you lost your memories forever.

"Alright, hands behind your back, sir." One of the guards moved forward and pulled out a pair of handcuffs, but John swatted at them and they skidded to the other side of the room.

"No!" He screamed, and everything happened at once.

First, one of the guards tried to hold John's arms before he would do something stupid, but he hit the guard full out in the nose. Blood painted his mask from the inside, and the guard collapsed on the floor. A second guard raced forward, aiming his ray gun at John's chest.

"Sir, we need you to remain calm or I _will_ shoot you." He said to John, who had quickly become breathless. His clouded eyes flared with anger, and he raced at the guard. It was like something entirely unknown had taken over his body and compelled him to react this way. The pills should have kept him under control.

Then, the guard fired point blank into John's chest, and he collapsed. Dark blood bubbled from his chest and he sprawled onto the floor, smearing it. Jamie and Amber started screaming and ran down the hall into one of the rooms. Nora remained seated, but her eyes had grown a bit larger.

By now, the guard who got punched had stood up and threw his mask into a corner. It was covered in blood and dripping. His face was very young, and he had probably only just gotten out of school. The third guard, who had had the clipboard, still stood in the corner of the room, writing everything down.

"Miss, you need to come with us. Now." The guard without the mask said, his eyes hard. Nora nodded and stood up slowly, her eyes flicking towards where her second husband lay dying on the ground. He looked up at that moment then, and silently begged her to come to her senses.

She ignored him.

The guard who shot John handcuffed her and led her out of the room. The one with the

blood nose ran down the hall, and came back with Jamie and Amber squirming in his arms. They screamed in high pitched voices, but it changed nothing.

"Let's go." He said to the guard with the clipboard. They both nodded to each other, and didn't even spare John a glance as they walked out the door, slamming it shut behind them.

On the floor, John closed his eyes and prayed to survive. All his old memories had come back in a sudden flood when the guard mentioned his step-daughter, Wynter. He remembered _everything_.

_Please, please God I have to find Nora again . . . and my _kids_ . . . and . . . and . . ._ His thoughts slipped away from him, and the grip he had on his stomach slackened.

Then the apartment was silent.


	6. Chapter Five

5

Four days later, and the routine hadn't changed. Everyone got used to sleeping in, and they stayed up till late at night in the diner telling stories or jokes. Then everyone would either have cooked breakfast is someone could be bothered cooking, or otherwise make it themselves.

Then between breakfast, lunch and dinner everyone did basically whatever they wanted. Wynter spent a lot of her time trying to be interested in what Ray watched on TV, and he tried to explain the rules of all the different sports that they watched but Wynter tuned out a lot. She listened to a lot of Dr. Death's podcasts and the songs he played – which all seemed to be by the same band.

Wynter also spent a lot of time talking with all the Killjoys, especially Ghoul. They talked about anything and everything, like things that had happened in the past and their best memories.

She also continued to check up on Party and everyone else's wounds from the battle a few days before, but they all seemed to heal pretty easily.

On the fifth day since Wynter had arrived, everyone was sitting around a table in one of the booths eating dinner, as usual. By now she'd gotten used to a lot of the BLI canned food that the Killjoys seemed to have stocked up. It wasn't even that bad, the canned stuff. It was the sealed packages and dried meals that were the worst. Everyone seemed to being having a good time at dinner, which was spaghetti and mashed potatoes. Suddenly, Jet got up and left the room. Before he left, Wynter saw him smile secretly. Everyone stopped talking and waited for him to return, and he did almost immediately after he left. He held something behind him, and he was grinning widely now.

"I didn't know when to show you all, and I've been saving them for a special occasion." He shrugged modestly.

"But because Wynter is basically a part of our family now, I thought tonight would be the night." Jet sat down at the table again and placed a plastic bag on the table. It was full of something, but Wynter didn't know what was in it. Jet tipped the contents onto the table and colorful packets with large lettering tumbled out. There were square packets and round ones – and all of them seemed to be basically the same thing.

"Candy!" Missile screamed excitedly, jumping up and down in her seat.

"Twinkies? You got _Twinkies_?" Kobra cried, a wide smile spreading across his face.

Wynter gaped, excitement bubbling through her as well. Everyone was silent for a moment before they started to tear into everything. There was licorice and chocolate and gummy worms and every type of candy imaginable.

"Jet, where the hell did you get all this stuff?" Party asked before mouthfuls of red licorice. Wynter laughed at the site, because the licorice was exactly the same color as his hair.

"From some of the raids, and from Sunny and September. They've got tones of this stuff, and know a guy that still tries to process all the foods from the old days." Jet grinned, happy to see that everyone else was enjoying the gifts.

"This is . . . bro, you're just fucking awesome." Ghoul said, laughing.

Wynter finished her second chocolate bar and reached for the last Twinkie, seeing as no one else looked like they were going to eat it. Missile was reaching for it at the same time, though. Wynter looked up and saw Missile looking back at her. She pulled her hand back, deciding that Missile could have it, seeing as she was so excited.

But Missile shook her head and pushed the Twinkie towards Wynter.

"You have it." She said, grinning.

"No, you can. I'm full, honestly." Wynter said, pushing it back to Missile.

"No! You deserve it so eat it!" Party said, licking the last of some sherbet off his lips. Missile looked up at him and grinned even wider, and sat back in her seat and stretched out.

"If she doesn't want it, Missile might as well have it." Ghoul said, shrugging. Party's nostrils flared dangerously, and Wynter sensed tension in the booth.

"She's helped us more than she needed to and she's the newest here," Party said, pushing the Twinkie back towards Wynter.

"So you can have it." Party said, staring at her. She gulped loudly and looked at Ghoul, whose eyes narrowed at Party.

"Why are you like this? If she doesn't want it, she doesn't want it!" Ghoul yelled at Party, Throwing the Twinkie at him. Kobra shook his head and smiled sadly at Wynter, knowing what was going to happen next.

Wynter sighed as Party slowly stood up over Ghoul, eyeing him.

"If you would just stop being such a –"

"Guys!" Wynter shouted, standing up and slamming her hands on the table. Instantly Ghoul and Party were quiet.

"It's. Just. A. Twinkie." She said slowly, looking at both of them. Putting all the power she had into staring them both down, her blue eyes sparkled in the dim lighting.

Gradually, Ghoul sat down, not taking his eyes off Party. Then Party sat down too, and the table was quiet. Wynter was just about to sit down when the lamp above the table started to sway.

"Crap!" Jet hissed, and jumped over the side of the booth to turn off the lights. He ran into Dr. Death's broadcasting room and then came out again.

"Oh my God. Everyone get down! Below the windows!" Kobra said hurriedly, crouching in the booth and staring out the windows. Wynter looked at Ghoul anxiously, but he just nodded reassuringly and pulled her over to a separate booth so they could crouch and look out the window too.

Wynter looked over to Missile, and the girl's eyes shone with fright. Wynter mouthed _It's okay _and Missile nodded, looking back out the window. Then Wynter saw the lights of a car get closer and bigger, shining brightly in the dark desert night. The lamps all swayed more from the cars movement. Instead of speeding past the diner, it slowed down.

At only just more than a crawl, the white car's roof slid open at the top, and two BLI guards stood up, aiming long ray guns at the diner. Rifles, and with scopes too. Everyone instinctively ducked down for a few seconds before peeking over the booths again. The men slowly crouched back down in the car, switching on the inside light to find something. The car had stopped by now, the driver undistinguishable in the gloom.

Wynter's heart stopped.

She couldn't breathe.

Her mind clouded with thick fog and then it disappeared when she realized what a terrible, terrible mistake she had made when she took a wrong turn in Battery City five days ago.

A middle-aged woman's face stared out of the window longingly at the diner. Her light blonde hair fell lightly from her head and stopped at her shoulders. She clutched two young girls to her chest. Both of them were fast asleep.

Wynter stood up, knowing in the back of her mind that she would be caught, but the guards were too busy with their guns to care.

The woman's eyes then widened so much that they were probably in danger of falling out of her head.

"Mom?" Wynter said quietly, mostly to herself. Ghoul was staring at her from the booth, his eyes wide in realization. All the other Killjoys were staring at her too. Party swore, scratching his head.

"Mom." She said a little louder. The car had stopped now, and the guards were reloading their guns, unaware of the silent communication going on between Wynter and her mother. The headlights partially lit up the diner, along with Wynter's face. Wynter's mother looked like she was sobbing, and the guard turned around at her, and then looked at the diner.

Wynter was a deer trapped in the car's headlights.

Ghoul pulled her down onto the ground under the booth's table just as the first bullet shattered the diner's front windows.

"Bloody hell." Ghoul hissed, dragging Wynter across the diner's floor behind the counter. There were two long shelves that ran the length of the counter, and they both slid into the bottom one, which just fit them both. In was only a meter wide, so they had to squish in to make sure they weren't seen, but it was as good a hiding place as any. Everyone else had other hiding spots it seemed, because they'd all disappeared.

Ghoul held a finger up to his lips, and Wynter wasn't in the right mind to even respond. She just nodded distractedly. He was on the outside edge, and tried to flatten himself out so if the guards looked over the counter top, they wouldn't see him.

At that moment, the doors squealed on their hinges as they were slammed open.

"Come out by order of the head of Better Living Industries." A voice yelled, and Wynter bit her lip, her heart beating wildly. She'd seen her mom. And her _sisters_. And they were captured by BLI.

This was terrible.

"If you don't come out, we _will_ find you and we _will_ shoot you." The voice said sternly. The two guards shuffled around the room a few seconds later. Wynter heard one of them bend over the countertop and look behind it before moving away. Ghoul exhaled a long breath and closed his eyes, keeping as still as he could.

Wynter could feel his body heat and knew that his heart was beating fast as well, but not as fast as hers. Wynter closed her eyes too and concentrated on anything but the fact that she'd seen her family again. But where was her step-dad?

As suddenly as they appeared, the guards left. They must have thought that it wasn't worth trying to find a couple of rebels when they had hostages to keep track of. The doors swung to a close behind them, but no one moved. The car engine turned on and it pulled away from the diner and back onto the road. Wynter bit her lip again and cold tears fell from her eyes. Ghoul opened his own eyes and noticed.

"No, no, no." He whispered, trying to sound reassuring. He crawled out of the shelf but stayed behind the counter. Wynter crawled out as well and sat on the floor.

"It's okay, it's okay." Ghoul repeated over and over again as he held her. Wynter shook her head, knowing that as long as _they_ had her family, it wouldn't be okay.

She had to get them back.

After a restless night's sleep, everyone was yet again gathered around one of the diner's booths, arguing.

"We need to leave! We _have_ to get them back!" Wynter yelled to everyone, her emotions getting the best of her. Ever since last night, she had been thinking through hundreds of different scenarios of how to get her family back from BLI, and most of them would either end up in them all getting caught, or killed. She didn't have a solution.

"Wynter, you need to sleep first. You're . . . you're not thinking straight!" Jet said, his logic ruling over anything else she could say.

"If we wait, something bad could happen!" She yelled again, shaking her head in disbelief as everyone just stared at her.

"Wynter . . ."Ghoul said, reaching out to her.

"No! We . . . need to pack." She said, pacing.

"Hey, something bad had already happened, and it's not going to get worse immediately, so you need to –" Kobra started to say, but Wynter yelled louder.

"Just stop! I _will_ walk if I have to, and I'll leave without you all if it means I have a chance of trying to get them back!" She raked her fingers angrily through her hair and stormed out of the room.

All four killjoys sat around the table in the booth, speechless.

"That's not like her." Jet said, biting his lip and leaning back.

Then Kobra stood up and climbed over the back of the booth, heading to where Wynter disappeared.

He found her packing what little belongings she had into her bag, and she just zipped it up when he entered.

"Knock knock." Kobra said, leaning against the doorframe.

"What do you want? Here to talk me out of this?" Wynter hissed at him, trying to shoulder her way past him.

"Uh uh." He said, blocking the door.

"Come _on_. I need to go." She said, trying to push him aside, but he was too strong. She gave up and sat hard on the edge of the bed, hugging the bag to her chest.

"You remember what I said the other night about us all losing people when this all started?" Kobra asked, still standing in the doorway. Wynter looked behind him but none of the other Killjoys were there.

"Yeah, and?"

"This has happened to all of us. You panic, freak out. You think the worst when the reality is, there's still a chance."

"A chance of what?" Wynter had calmed down a bit, and wasn't gripping her bag as tightly.

"That they're still okay." Kobra shrugged and bit his lip, thinking. "Yeah, we are going to get your family back. And yes, we _are_ coming with you. But we need to plan this." He said, frowning.

Wynter hesitated, trying to come up with a way to leave sooner and just wing it, but she decided that Kobra was right. If this was going to work, they needed a plan. Or a few.

"Okay, okay. But we have to leave soon." Wynter said, throwing her bag to the head of the bed.

"Fair enough, but let's go talk to the others and figure out how this is gonna work, shall we?"

Rolling her eyes, Wynter stood up and followed him out to the diner again. No one had moved since she'd left, and they all looked up expectantly when she walked in the room.

"Um . . . sorry. About before. It's just that–"

"We get it." Party said, smiling reassuringly

"Now that that's out of the way, we need a plan, right?" Ghoul said, looking to everyone around the booth.

"Three would be good." Jet said.

"What?" Everyone asked at the same time, and then they all started to laugh.

"Three because what if Plan A goes wrong, and we don't have a backup? Or what if Plan B goes wrong, and we don't have a backup for that?" Jet said, wide-eyed.

"So basically we need 26 different plans if they all fail . . . and then even more for how many numbers there are? Fantastic idea!" Wynter said sarcastically, still smiling.

"Really? Thanks! Yeah, I've–"

"Jet, I was kidding!" Party and Ghoul burst out laughing, smacking their hands on the table. Jet blushed and sank back in his chair, and Kobra grinned at the scene.

"Oh yeah I, um, yeah." Jet started to say, but was interrupted by Party and Ghoul's laughter again.

"Guys, guys, we still need a plan!" Wynter said, and everyone settled down.

Sunlight glittered through the dusty windows, and dust motes filled the air, swirling and dancing around the Killjoys. After a couple of hours of intense concentration – or as much as they could handle – they had finally come up with the master plan. Wynter bounced eagerly in her seat as the plan was set in motion, and everyone gathered supplies.

_It's going to work. This is really happening._ She reminded herself as she waved goodbye to Missile, Dr. Death and Pony, who stood outside the diner to farewell them and wish them luck.

The car kicked up clouds of dust behind it as Party drove at twice the speed limit towards Battery City.


	7. Chapter Six

6

"Party, where the hell are you going? We need to take Route Guano to get to Zone One!" Ghoul yelled from the backseat, where he sat in between Jet and Kobra.

Route Guano was the main road that led from the heart of Battery City all the way to the Outer Zones, the forbidden places. Everyone always said that the radiation levels were still too high in the outer zones for anyone without gas masks and full protection body suits to go, but what did the Killjoys care? Besides, BLI probably only made that up so that no one would dare to venture far beyond the City's walls.

"If we take Guano, we're gonna get caught. If we cut across about, what, 20 miles from Guano into Zone 5? That's gonna work. Then we can basically keep on that road until we get to the Battery City boundaries." Party nodded to himself, and Wynter grinned, turning to look out the window. It'd been half an hour since they'd left the diner, and they were making progress. It was slow, but it was still something. It was going to take all day and all night to get to Battery City because of the route they were taking.

Life was short, especially out in the desert, so you made the most of it while you still had the time to.

A few hours later, Party pulled up to a small gas station that had a huge _"OUT OF ORDER"_ sign hanging above the doorway and on all the pumps. Party jumped out of the car, and everyone followed him inside.

"Inky! September!" Party yelled, jogging around the back of the building. A few moments later, he came out through the front with two grinning girls trailing behind him.

"Wynter, this is Inky," Party gestured towards the taller girl. "And this is September." He gestured towards the shorter girl.

Inky and September ran up to her, shaking her hand and giving her massive bear hugs. Wynter grinned and chatted happily with the other two girls, who were only a couple of years younger than her, while the other Killjoys milled around, filled the car with more gas, and joined in with the conversation.

Inky – the taller girl - had her hair dyed in a rainbow, so that when she turned around it looked like a rainbow was falling down her back in long, loose curls. She wore denim shorts and a tie-dyed singlet, which was a little too large for her.

September – the shorter girl – had black dyed hair streaked with bright green. She wore a strange pair of shoes that Wynter had never seen before and was covered in gold chains – necklaces, bracelets, earrings and had more piercings than she could count.

Inky and September told Wynter about their stories and how both their families started out as rebels. Their parents didn't like the fact that you had to take those pills, they said, and that everyone would end up being controlled by BLI. Their parents were captured and taken away a year ago.

After explaining that Wynter and the Killjoys really needed to get going, but would call in on the way back, they were on their way, with extra food and snack foods that Inky and September had insisted they take with them.

Within a few hours they'd made it to the border of Zone Four, but they still had a long way to go.

At midnight they passed the Zone Four S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W/ Guard Post, but it was empty and deserted. No one from the city normally travelled out this far, for fear of the 'toxic' fumes, and because they were too drugged up. S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W/ referred to the secret police of Better Living Industries. They were basically Draculoids but with more training and different outfits. Most people at Wynter's old school just called them Crows.

Around two in the morning, everyone was quiet in the car. Jet, Ghoul, and Kobra were fast asleep in the back, but Wynter couldn't sleep. With the motion of the car and the soft purring it made, she should've been able to sleep easily. Instead, she was awake and worrying.

She was trying to find a fault in their plan, all the plans, but she couldn't. Wynter smiled to herself with the realization that this was all going to go right, or as close as they could get it.

Back at the diner, before they left, Jet handed her a purple ray gun, with a small white rose painted on to look like it was winding up the handle onto the top of the gun. She'd nearly squealed with delight, and strapped it to her belt immediately.

"Wait, what about a mask?" Kobra had said, his eyes widening.

"She can just use my scarf." Party said, smiling. He gave her a red and black checked scarf, with small braided tassels hanging from the ends. Her grin had widened even more, and she hugged each of the Killjoys in turn before saying goodbye to the others.

Wynter now smiled at the memory, and her hand subconsciously went to her belt, where the gun was still clipped in, safety on. It was getting warm in the car, so she lifted her hands up to tie her hair in a ponytail.

Party nearly jumped through the roof, and Wynter stifled a laugh.

"Jesus," He hissed, shaking his head. "I thought you were asleep!"

"Nope, I'm just as awake as you." She replied, winding the hair tie around her thick hair one more time.

"I wish you could drive." He said, grinning.

"Me too, then I could've left a lot earlier." She said, looking out the window into darkness. Party didn't say anything, but his grin disappeared. He kept his eyes on the road. A few minutes later, he yawned loudly, looking like a cat.

"You need some coffee," Wynter said, and Party nodded sleepily. "Pull over then, I'll make some."

"You? Make coffee over a fire? Do you even know how to start a fire?" His grin returned.

"Yes! I mean, no, but it didn't look that hard when Ghoul did it." She moaned, and he pulled the car to a stop at the side of the road, turning off the headlights.

"LILY!" Ghoul suddenly shrieked from the back, jolting forward, eyes open. A cold sweat had broken out on his forehead and he looked very, very pale. He noticed Wynter staring at him, but Party just got out of the car.

"Shu . . . shuddup man." Kobra said, wide eyed, sleep lacing his voice, and Jet jerked forward, rubbing his eyes.

"Bro, go back to sleep. You're gonna need it . . ." Before he even finished what he was saying, Jet fell asleep again. Ghoul nudged Kobra in the ribs, but he closed his eyes and went back to sleep too. Ghoul gave up and put his head in his hands. Then, thinking better of it, he put his head up again, wiping at his face.

"Ghoul?" Wynter said quietly, a questioning look on her face. He breathed deeply and shook his head.

"It's nothing. Sorry I woke you up." He sank back in the seat, closing his eyes.

"I haven't slept, so don't worry." She turned around to face him, noticing that Party had already gathered dry wood for the fire.

"Come outside and have some coffee. I'm making it." She said, tilting her head. Ghoul cracked an eye open and looked at her, then sighed.

He climbed over Kobra and opened the door, shutting it quietly behind him. Wynter went over to where Party had assembled the wood and sticks. He handed her a matchbox and a match, then went to get water, milk powder and the coffee from the boot.

Luckily for her, she lit the fire on the second try, and it was roaring within a few minutes. Party went to get more wood, and Wynter set up the tripod and pot the exact same way she'd seen Ghoul do it nearly a week ago.

Then she got stuck.

In Battery City, you didn't learn to cook or even make coffee, because not many people could afford it. Fortunately for the Killjoys, they always had a lot on hand.

Wynter started to pour the water into the pot, then the coffee, but Ghoul grunted and shuffled over to where she was sitting.

"You let the water boil, then take it off and put the coffee in it." He said, taking the coffee packet out of her hands and behind him. She rolled her eyes but smiled anyway.

Ghoul still had a troubled look behind his eyes, and it bothered Wynter.

"Are you okay?" She asked, brushing the stray strands of hair that had fallen out of her ponytail behind her ears. He hesitated before answering, and took another deep breath.

"No." He said, before thinking better of it. "Yes. Yes I am, don't worry, it was nothing." He shrugged, taking he boiled water off the tripod.

"Okay, now you put the coffee in . . ." He poured the coffee mixture into the pot and stirred it with a wooden spoon. "And let it boil again."

Wynter nodded, but squinted at Ghoul in the fire's light. At that moment Party came back, dumping a bunch of twigs and small branches on the ground beside the fire.

"Right. Coffee nearly ready?" He asked, noticing the silence between Wynter and ghoul. He almost rolled his eyes, but sat down instead.

"Oh. Yeah, in a sec." She replied, ignoring the look Party was giving her. After the coffee had boiled again, she took the pot off, stirred it and added some of the milk powder before stirring it again. Then she served it up in cups for the three of them.

Ghoul kept his eyes on the ground as Wynter handed him his cup.

"So . . . Wynter. Why aren't you yelling at us about stopping here for so long?" Party asked, eyeing her. She bit her lip before answering.

"Kobra talked me out of having to get there fast." After confused looks crossed both of the Killjoy's faces, she explained further.

"He said that nothing bad was going to happen straight away, and that BLI wants to drag this out as long as they can. At least, that's what I got from it."

Party nodded and Ghoul just went back to sipping his coffee. And the coffee wasn't even that bad, it probably would've been better if it was made back at the diner, but coffee is coffee.

Fifteen minutes later and they were ready to go again. Ghoul offered to drive, even though Party had had his coffee. He was so exhausted though, that within a few minutes from getting into the back, Party fell asleep.

Ghoul drove noticeably slower than Party, but it was still pretty fast. After a while, Wynter worked up the nerve to talk to him.

"I know that you probably don't want to tell me, and that you're probably never _going_ to tell me, but what was that all about back there?" She asked, and saw Ghoul's knuckles grow white on the steering wheel as his grip on it tightened.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He said between gritted teeth.

"The screaming? Then the silence? The weird looks? You _do_ know what I'm talking about." She insisted, leaning forward in the seat.

"Look, Wynter. You're too young to understand okay?"

"Too young to understand? Well I probably don't have much longer to live if BLI figure out that we're after them." She said, and knew she was right. Ghoul didn't deny it either, but he didn't say anything.

"If you don't want to tell me, fine. I probably don't even need to know, right?" She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, looking out the window. Ghoul sighed, and Wynter knew she'd won.

"I can't tell you everything though." He said, and she turned to look at him again. He saw her nod, then took _another_ deep breath.

"After the bombings, we all left. Jet, Party, Kobra, and me. And . . . and our families. We thought we could make it to Arizona, or Utah if we could. We headed for the least populated places, which was a good and bad idea. We . . . halfway to a town we found, Fort Apache, it . . . we . . ." He took a moment, trying to form the words.

"We crashed. But it . . . it wasn't our fault . . . . . . was it?"

"Come on, man, we need to go." Frank Iero moaned from the backseat of the land cruiser, clapping his hands together like a little kid.

"Yeah, yeah, hang on." Gerard Way said from behind the wheel as he reversed out of the double garage. Another car pulled out after them, a black Hummer. Frank saw Gerard and Lindsey – Gerard's wife – exchange a dark look before pulling away from their house.

They were probably never coming back.

Frank tried to sleep, but the car jolted on the road, trying to beat the traffic, and Mikey and Alicia Way kept whispering to each other. Eventually, though, he managed to get some shut-eye.

Four hours later, after passing over the border into Arizona, Frank woke up. Mikey and Alicia were asleep, and Lindsey had her head rested against the window with Bandit – her daughter – in her arms.

Gerard's eyes were sleepy but he refused to stop driving when Frank offered to take over. So instead he sulked in the back and looked out the window at the desert landscape. Everything was quiet out there too.

A minute later, Frank spotted another car's headlights heading towards them, but Gerard didn't slow down, even if he was way over the speed limit.

Frank stretched and looked behind him, and saw a car was trailing Ray's Hummer.

"Um . . . Gee–"

"Yeah, I know. They've been there for about an hour." He said from the front, his eyebrows knitting together. Frank bit his lip, thinking it was very strange, but went back to sleep.

Half an hour later, he was shaken awake by Mikey, who had a frantic look in his eyes. It was something that Frank hadn't seen from him since the concert in 2004, where Gerard had a major breakdown. He was up and ready immediately, and asked what the hell was going on.

"They're chasing us. We don't . . . who are they?" Mikey replied, looking nervously behind him through the back window.

"Chill, we'll figure this out." Frank said, noticing that everyone in the car was awake now.

"They only just picked up speed, and that guy that was coming towards us? He's behind us now." Gerard said, gripping the steering wheel.

"Okay, okay. So do you –" Frank started to ask before he noticed two other cars coming at them, straight on.

"Crap," Gerard said, and Alicia took Mikey's hand in her own. Lindsey held Bandit closer as the cars got nearer. And nearer.

_Oh God. _

_ Oh _God_. _

_ They aren't going to stop._

"Shit, shit, SHIT!" Gerard shouted as he tried to turn away from the oncoming cars. When people in movies say that everything happens in slow motion, they aren't just saying it for the sake of it.

Frank saw the first car was white, with **_BLI_**written on the hood. He couldn't see the second car so well, but guessed that it was probably the same. The driver wore a strange black and white mask, with a gaping face on it.

Then, he saw Mikey hug Alicia and whisper something to her that Frank couldn't make out. Then he turned to Frank and grabbed his hand, squeezing it quickly before turning back to his wife. Gerard mouthed _I love you_ to Bandit and Lindsey, then looked in the rearview mirror at Frank. They both knew what was about to happen. Gerard blinked tears out of his eyes and nodded to Frank in the mirror before turning back to the road. Frank was never one to pray, but he prayed for his life then and there like no one had ever prayed before. It wasn't even to a god; it was just to anyone that was listening.

Then the other car hit theirs.

The front half of the white car smashed through the windscreen, and Frank instinctively ducked down, covering his head. Then it was the sound of metal scraping metal, and the smell of gas and copper filled the air.

_Copper? _

He heard a second crash and his heart skipped a beat.

Jamia was in the other car. With his three _kids_.

Jesus, no, _please_.

"No . . ." He croaked as the white car half flipped over the land cruiser and landed on the hood, crushing everyone inside. He heard Alicia scream, and Mikey frantically trying to pry the roof off her chest. Frank couldn't hear anything from the front, which made him panic.

Then the roof buckled, crushing Frank even more. He struggled to breathe, and thrashed around, desperately trying to get some air into his lungs. He felt a couple of ribs crack and he couldn't move his left hand at all because it was pinned under something cold.

_This is it. Well, shit._ He thought before blacking out.

"Ban . . . Bandit?" A soft voice brought Frank back into consciousness. His head throbbed and his thoughts slurred together slower than they should have. He smelt something burning, but saw nothing. Moving his head to the right, he saw a flickering light coming from outside the window. He tried to lift his head up to look around but it felt stiff. He gave up and stared at the squashed ceiling, only centimeters from his face.

"Lindsey, Lindsey wake up. Wake up!" Gerard cried from the front, and Frank turned his head in that direction, managing to get his right arm free. At least nothing was broken there. He heard Lindsey moan, and almost heard Gerard grin.

"Gerard?" He croaked, then cleared his throat. "Are you okay?" He said loudly, so that Gerard would hear him.

"Frank? Oh my God." His voice broke, and Frank heard him burst into tears. "Are you okay?" He managed to get out.

"Yeah. No, I think I broke my hand, but I'm pinned. I can't . . . I can't get out." Frank said, trying to move his left hand. Jolts of pain spiraled up his arm, and his vision blurred.

"I'll come open the door." He heard his friend squirm out of the rubble and a second later the door opened, and his head cracked against the cold concrete of the road.

"Thanks." Frank moaned, rubbing his head with his free hand. He looked up at Gerard, whose face was lit by the full moon's light. It was streaked with blood and tears.

"You look great," He said, and Gerard tried to grin but couldn't. Instead, he dragged Frank out of the car, laying him on the road. It's not like there were any other cars coming.

Slowly, he moved his left foot, then his right, then bent his knees. Nothing was broken or fractured. Then he tried to move his left hand properly now that is was free and screamed.

No bones were sticking out but it looked . . . very, very wrong. His fingers . . . he didn't know what to do. Frank took his singlet off from under his long-sleeve shirt and wrapped his hand up carefully before standing up. Gerard had disappeared, and Frank looked around.

The other car was totaled.

Completely and utterly totaled. It had flipped and landed a few meters from the road, and it was smoking and dented so much that it didn't even resemble a car.

"No, no, no, no, no!" He hissed and limped over to the car. "Jamia?" He added, circling the car. Someone mumbled from the inside and his heart skipped another beat.

"Hey asshole, get over here and help me." It was Ray. Frank went over to the driver's side and pried the door open with one hand. It was pretty easy considering it was almost completely off anyway.

"Anything broken?" He asked, and Ray crawled out of the car.

"No, I think I hit my head though." His frizzy hair was matted with blood and he had sand and dirt all over him.

Frank left him and circled the car, trying to keep his cool. Don't panic.

Crawling to the right door, it took him a few minutes to get it open, and all the time he kept crying, _"Answer me, answer me, are you okay? God please talk to me!"_

He finally tore away the door and got on his stomach, trying to see into the car. What he saw nearly made him stop breathing then and there.

Jamia was crippled at a funny angle, but was awake. Her breathing was labored, and she struggled to focus her eyes on Frank.

"Jamia, Jamia look at me. Look at me!" He yelled, tears pouring down his cheeks. Her eyes focused on his face and she smiled a sad smile.

"Take care of Cherry . . . Lily and Miles are up . . . up . . ." Her eyes flickered towards the sky, and a single tear fell from her eye.

She coughed a few times, and blood sprayed out from her lips, covering Frank, but what did he care?

"No, no you can't leave me Jamia. Don't leave me!" He screamed at her, grabbing both her hands in his, even though it hurt – physically and mentally - as he knelt beside her. Jamia looked up at him, but couldn't focus her eyes, so she closed them instead.

"I love you, Frank." She whispered before her hands slackened in his and she stopped breathing forever.

"JAMIA!" He wailed, the tears blurring his vision. He pulled her out of the wreckage and held her against his chest. Rocking back and forth, he mumbled something to her. A sound made him open his eyes, and he saw Cherry crawling out of the car. She only had a few scrapes but she was okay. He opened he arm and she crawled to him.

He sat like that a while, just rocking them both back and forth, before anyone came to look for him.

"Frank?" It was Gerard. He looked up, dry-eyed now, and Gerard gestured for him to stand up. Frank kissed Jamia one last time before standing up.

Gerard pulled him into a hug and whispered, "I'm so sorry,"

Frank nodded and pulled away, picking Cherry up. He didn't want to see his other daughter and son's bodies, and he knew he never could. He took a deep breath and followed Gerard over to the other car.

Everyone else had lost someone, and they all had tears streaking down their faces. Frank couldn't look at anyone except Cherry, who was very still in his arms. She looked at both crashes without really understanding it. Gerard stuttered something about who'd died, but Frank didn't pay much attention.

Christa was gone. Broken neck.

Jamia, Lily, and Miles were gone, but he didn't want to think about that.

And Mikey had dislocated his ankle.

Frank stood next to him while Ray popped it back into place, angrily rubbing away the tears that clouded his vision. Mikey swore, and Alicia comforted him as Ray moved away.

So basically everyone else was okay.

Just when he thought that there had been enough trauma and drama for one night, another pair of headlights came towards them from the horizon.

"Look!" Lindsey pointed, and jumped. "Maybe they can help us! Here – hold Bandit." She gave Bandit to Gerard, who was standing stock still in the middle of the road, not knowing what to do.

"Lindsey, don't go over–" Alicia yelled, but she ignored her.

"They can help us! They can . . . call an ambulance or something! We _need_ help!" Lindsey shouted over her shoulder, running towards the vehicle, waving her arms.

It took Gerard a full minute to snap out of it before he gave Bandit to Alicia. He sprinted towards Lindsey, who was a good 200 meters away now.

"LINDSEY! DON'T–" He yelled, but it was too late.

Lindsey had reached the car, which had slowed down. The talked to the driver, and he said something that Frank didn't hear, obviously, but she froze up. Lindsey turned to run, but a man in a white suit ran after her and grabbed her. He shoved her into the car just as Gerard got there, but the man didn't have time to get in the car. It drove away without him, but not before Frank saw what was written on the side of the car.

**_Better Living Industries_****.**

"Who the hell are these guys?" Mikey hissed, leaning against Alicia for support.

Gerard grabbed the man by the collar and sized him up, even though he was a good foot shorter than the man. They could hear him screaming at the man, beating at him. The man fought back, throwing in a couple of good punches that cut Gerard's lip and would give him bruises. By now, everyone was running towards the scene as fast as they could – which wasn't very fast for Mikey.

Ray got there first, and punched the man so hard in the stomach that he toppled over, spitting blood on the white concrete road. Gerard kicked him in the chin, and his head snapped back with an awful crack before he slumped to the ground.

Everyone was quiet.

That's when Bandit started whimpering.

Gerard took her in his arms and told her it was going to be okay. He walked away from the man without looking back. He didn't even look remorseful. Ray stood there with his mouth open, then swore over and over again as he raked his fingers angrily through his thick hair. Mikey and Alicia didn't say anything, but were both wide-eyed.

Mikey ran after Gerard, and Alicia walked slowly behind him. Ray walked next to Frank, who hadn't said anything.

"What the hell are we going to do?" Ray asked him, and he shook his head.

"I don't know." Frank whispered so as not to disturb Cherry, who clung to him even closer.

"I don't know."


	8. Chapter Seven

7

"Ghoul. Ghoul?" Wynter shook his arm. It'd been nearly half an hour since she'd asked him what was up, and he'd blanked out. She'd decided to leave him for a while, but now she was worried.

"What?" He blinked his eyes hard and shook his head, looking at her.

"You kind of just blanked out." She shouldn't have brought it up, shouldn't have forced him into telling her.

"I was telling you about . . . about the crash, right?"

"Yeah, don't worry about it. I probably don't need to know." She insisted, turning away.

"You look like her. Like how she would look at your age. That's all I'm going to say." Ghoul sighed in frustration, his eyes locked on the narrow road that wound around the rocky hills.

"Like who?" Wynter's curiosity got the best of her, and she looked at him again. He faltered before replying.

"Lily." He said through clenched teeth.

"Wasn't that what Party was saying–"

"Yes." He interrupted, ending the conversation. She didn't dare ask who Lily was now.

"What Zone are we in?" She asked him, changing the topic.

"Just passed the border of Three and Four." He said, trying not to make much of a conversation. Wynter ignored it the best she could and tried to sleep.

By some miracle, she did.

When she woke up, the car wasn't moving, and everyone was asleep except for Ghoul.

_ Typical._ She thought, moving into a move comfortable position.

Leaning her head against the window, she looked out and saw very faint lights in the distance. Battery City.

She looked at Ghoul, who had his hands on the wheel and was leaning his chin on them. Then he looked at her. After a few seconds, she looked away, closing her eyes.

"Wynter?" He whispered quietly.

"Mmmm?"

"I'm sorry." He sounded so genuine that she opened her eyes and stared at him.

"For what?" She asked, immensely confused.

"For not telling you as much as I should." He shrugged, leaning back in the seat. Wynter frowned and turned her head towards him more.

"You don't have to tell me anything. We've only known each other for nearly a week, so . . ." Ghoul was quiet for a minute before she carried on.

"We're close right?"

"Yeah," He replied, tilting his head to the side.

"Don't tell them this," Wynter gestured towards the others in the back. "But when this whole thing started, my dad was taken by BLI."

"Are you serious?" Ghoul's mouth dropped open, which Wynter thought was weird.

"Yes."

"This is huge . . ." He mumbled, mostly to himself. Wynter thought that through then noticed that he was talking about something she didn't know about.

"What do you mean?" She questioned.

"You said you didn't want to know, so . . ." He held up his hands apologetically, and Wynter rolled her eyes and hit him in the arm.

"Tell me." She whined, leaning forward on her elbows. He sighed and tried to figure out how to start.

"The crash, right? Lindsey was–"

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Party asked angrily from the back. Wynter nearly jumped a foot out of her seat. He was talking louder than her and Ghoul had all night. Kobra and Jet woke up too, rubbing sleep from their eyes.

"Well she wanted to know what–" Ghoul started, trying to not rile Party up even more.

"No! You go around yelling at me to keep _my_ mouth shut about _your_ family, so don't go talking about _mine_!" He was shouting by now, his eyes livid.

"Hey I'm sure it was nothing," Kobra started, but Party didn't want to hear it. He shushed his younger brother and glared at Ghoul, who turned around and tried to ignore him.

"Why did you even bring her up?" He shouted at Ghoul, who was getting angrier by the second.

"Party!" Wynter said firmly, and he looked at her. "I started it, so don't run your mouth off to him!" She pointed at Ghoul, who smirked.

"Don't _defend_ that son of a–"

Jet punched Party in the arm really hard, and that shut him up. Ghoul got out of the car and went to the boot. Kobra followed him out, and warned Party that if he got out of the car he'd be in _deep_ trouble.

Party turned back to Wynter, glaring at _her_ now.

"You don't even know who she is!" He hissed, but Jet hit him again.

"No, I don't." She said, then excused herself and got out of the car. Ghoul and Kobra were rifling through the boot, searching for something. Wynter stood there quietly, looking over at the horizon. Dawn was still a few hours away, but the sky over Battery City was lit up like a beacon. It practically was, for those who were lost. At least they'd know where to go for help.

Help. She grinned despite the situation at the thought of Battery City actually helping _anyone_.

Kobra set up a fire behind some large boulders so that anyone looking out from the City wouldn't see them. Ghoul bought out a bag full of cooking utensils and cans of food.

A few minutes later, everyone except Party was gathered around the small fire, cooking cans of food over it. Jet cracked open the lid of one after it was nearly done and dug in.

They were going to need all the strength they could get.

After finishing their meals, the Killjoys lounged around the fire, keeping warm. Kobra heated up a can and took it to his brother, who was still sulking in the car. Wynter heard Party yell at Kobra, which was unlike him. Those two were so close that it seemed . . . unreasonable . . . for Party to abuse their relationship like he was. But Wynter guessed he was just angry at Ghoul for bringing up such a sensitive subject in front of her – or anyone, it seemed.

A quiet _crack_ made Wynter turn around, and she saw five figures standing beyond the light of the fire.

Ghoul jumped up, gun at the ready, and turned the safety off. The others were up quickly too, guns up and pointed at the newcomers.

"Hey, hey. No need for that, we're all friends here, aren't we?" A voice said from the darkness. The figures all stepped forward into the light, and the other Killjoys grinned and put their guns back in their belts.

"Static?" Ghoul asked, confused. Then he smiled and walked forward. Wynter tagged along, not knowing what else to do.

"Why're you all out here?" He asked, hugging them all. Three were girls, and the other two were boys. Static, the one who spoke first, had his long, bleach-blonde hair pulled back in a loose ponytail.

"We . . . um . . ." Ghoul looked at Wynter, who nodded, and he explained to the newcomers their plan.

"Whoa, that's insane man." One of the girls said, her eyebrows arched.

"Totally. How're you gonna get in and out of _that_," Another girl with knee-high pink boots said, pointing at Battery City. "Alive?" She said, finishing the sentence.

"If we stick to the plan, it should work." Wynter said, shrugging. All eyes turned to her, as if realizing that she was standing there listening in.

"Who're you? We haven't seen you before." The other boy said, his body stiffening at the thought that she could be a possible threat.

"Wyn–" She started, but Ghoul elbowed her. "Cynical Sapphire. Or just . . . Sapphire for short." Ghoul smiled approvingly, and the boy gave her an up-and-down look before relaxing.

"Oh, by the way, this is Static, obviously," Ghoul said, pointing to the boy with the blonde hair.

"And Kat," He gestured to the girl with the pink boots. Her hair was candy-floss pink and tied back in a loose braid, and her clothes were light pink as well, but her eyes were outlined with heavy black eyeliner, and she wore a studded black choker necklace that contrasted with the lighter colors.

"Daisy," The next girl waved cheerily, her leather jacket shining in the light of the fire. Her dark jeans were dotted with brightly colored daises, all different colors, and she had an electric blue streak running through her hair, which was up in a ponytail.

"That's Sunny," As Ghoul pointed to her, she looked up from where she had sat down by the fire to clean her gun. She wore a red checkered shirt and torn denim shorts, and her eyes were a brilliant light hazel color.

_ So that must be why they call her Sunny_.

"And lastly, Crash." The boy – or guy, since he was older than the girls – looked up from the fire, flicking his long black hair out of his eyes. He completely wore black – black jeans, black jacket, black shirt and a strange bracelet made out of what looked like denim. He grunted and turned back to the fire, hostile once again.

"Oh my God, what're you guys doing here?" A voice asked incredulously, and Wynter turned to see Party come and sit by the fire like everyone else. He must've gotten tired of sitting in the car with no-one to talk to.

A load of exasperated sighs came from everyone in the group as Static, clearly the leading guy, told the other Killjoys how him and his crew ended up around these parts.

They're all based in Zone 2 and 3 – the Zones closest to Battery City without being in Zone 1 – where they were now. Except for Crash, who Static said was a 'Zone Runner' – a Killjoy that doesn't reside in a particular Zone, but instead travels throughout all the Zones making other Killjoy friends to stay with. It was hard to believe that Crash could make any friends being as silent and icy as he was, but Wynter shrugged the thought off. It wasn't important. What _was_ important was getting on with their plan, which is meant to start an hour before dawn.

These new Killjoys had been roaming around this night, hunting and gathering supplies to take back to their home. They saw the Killjoys' car speeding past though, and hid. After realizing that it wasn't a BLI car, they followed it on foot, which is why it took them a good hour and a half to get here.

Coincidentally, that's how long the car had been sitting in the desert before Wynter woke up.

"And the rest," Static said, with a dramatic pause, "Is history."

"Does anyone have the time?" Wynter asked suddenly, remembering that they needed to get going soon. Daisy pulled out an old, wind up watch and bought it into the light.

"Nearly five." She said, putting the watch away carefully. They needed to get moving if they were going to walk to the City by dawn.

"We need to get going, guys." Wynter said to the Killjoys before standing up, brushing the sand off her jeans.

"Yup. Long way to walk." Kobra said, standing up as well. Soon, everyone was up and getting ready. Ghoul parked the car between two of the boulders and left it. Everyone geared up with their guns and masks, and they were set to go.

"Ugh," Wynter moaned as she tripped in a hidden sand hole. It'd only been ten minutes since they'd left and she'd tripped twice already. Ghoul grabbed her arm with fast reflexes and she righted herself.

"Watch it or you'll fall into a gorge." Ghoul laughed, but she couldn't tell whether he was serious or not.

"Hey, walking through deserts aren't exactly my specialty, thanks." She said sarcastically, trying to avoid the large cracks on the desert floor. He laughed, along with a few of the other Killjoys, who nimbly stepped over the ground's soft spots. Wynter rolled her eyes but was more careful where she stepped.

Three quarters of an hour later, they crouched behind a low sand hill, going over the plan. Once everyone was clear on what needed to be done, they set off in different directions. Jet, Sunny, and Static were to head over toward the south-west side of the City. It was probably going to take them a half hour, so everyone else needed to be busy in the meantime. Ghoul, Kobra, and Daisy were going to head for the north, where they could knock out the guards at the outpost there. Wynter, Kat, Party, and Crash were going to head straight for the City and go undercover. They were going to try sneak as close as they could to the second main BLI station in the City – which was located near the most eastern part of Battery City.

"Don't get into any trouble until I'm there, okay?" Ghoul said to Wynter before they went their separate ways. She nodded, grinning. He hugged her tightly before reluctantly letting go.

"See you later, _Sapphire_." He said before turning to jog and catch up with Kobra and Daisy, who had already started on their way.

Breathing deeply, Wynter pulled the black and red checkered scarf up around her nose and mouth, and checked that her gun was safely nestled under her jacket, before turning to Kat, Party, and Crash.

"Ready?" She asked, looking to each of them.

"More than you are. Let's go." Party said, leading the way towards Battery City's nearest wall.

After hesitating, Wynter followed.

Sooner than she expected, Wynter found herself staring up at the 20 meter high wall that surrounded the City. It was a dull, off-white, so that if you were looking at it in the day, you wouldn't get light scars from its brightness. Every half mile, Party had said, there was a guard post, with a few guards on patrol 24 hours a day. They were currently nestled halfway in between two guard posts, so couldn't be seen.

Battery City was circular in shape, so when Wynter looked either way along the wall, it curved around a corner so she couldn't see what was ahead of her.

"Right," Party said, breaking her out of her trance. He took what looked like a larger version of a stethoscope from his bag. Putting it against the wall, he shushed everyone and listened for a minute before putting the device away.

"We're all good." He said, before rummaging through his bag again, this time pulling out what look like an enlarged pen.

"Stand back," He ordered, then pointed the pen-thing at the wall. A blue laser burst out of it and as Party moved it around the wall in a small rectangle, it cut through the thick metal like a hot knife through butter. A few minutes later, there was a small hole in the wall just big enough for them to crawl through. On the other side, Wynter looked around in the dark and saw they were at the back of a building, the white panels only stretching up a few meters before the roof started. Kat quietly placed the cut-out rectangle into the wall again, using a type of concealer on it. Ten seconds later, it didn't look like anyone had broken through at all.

Wynter ran her hand over the wall, but only felt a small bump where the part of the wall had been pulled out. Shaking her head in amazement, she turned away to face the Killjoys. They started moving along the wall of the building until they came to a corner.

Party pulled out a map at that point and spread it out on the ground, as soon as he knew no one else was around. Clicking on a small flashlight that had a red tint to it – so that it wouldn't affect their night vision – he pointed it at the map. Kat pointed to a small building at the most eastern part of Battery City. This was where they were now. Everyone's eyes followed Party's finger as he silently traced the route that they would take to get to the loading dock for the BLI station. He nodded and looked up, confident in the plan.

Crash shook his head then, and showed them a different route. It was longer, but they wouldn't be on any of the streets at all, only in alleyways and abandoned warehouses. Party traced the route again, and so did Wynter, but they couldn't find a fault in it. Then Crash pointed at a building that said _Clothing_ on it in small, bold letters. Clothing stores only sold the plain black and white clothes that everyone in Battery City wore. This would mean ditching their other clothes in another location and changing into the new ones so they looked even less suspicious.

"Yes." Wynter said, and everyone looked at her. She shrugged, then tapped her finger on the clothing store twice, then at the back entrance.

It was an adjustment to the plan, but it would work better.

A while later, the four Killjoys crouched behind a large dumpster, waiting for the shop to open. Just at that moment, a figure dressed in white appeared from the store. The door swung shut behind them, and they threw something in the dumpster before turning around.

Party nodded at Kat, who slid her katana – a Japanese Samurai sword – out of its sheath. Party shook his head violently, then mimicked hitting someone on the back of the head. She nodded and slipped out from behind the dumpster. As quick and swift as a cheetah stalking its prey, Kat came up behind the figure and knocked them out with the handle of her katana. She slid it back into its curved sheath again, beckoning the others to follow her.

After carefully locking the back door behind them, the four of them snuck around the store, making sure they kept behind the racks of clothes so anyone looking in from the outside wouldn't see them. Wynter found a white pair of skinny jeans and a sleeveless white blouse that was trimmed with black silk. It must have cost a fortune, but what did it matter to them? She also found a pair of black boots to complete her non-descript look.

After everyone had changed, they scoured the back alley for a place to hide their other clothes. Wynter found a hidden compartment in the back of a grey dumpster, and gestured for everyone to put their stuff in it.

When that was done, they continued with the plan. Their new route took them in and out of alleys, through small and large warehouses that were lined with abandoned and empty shelves and through the back of a few ground-floor apartments. Once, they heard the tell-tale sign of guards, and dropped silently into a manhole. Thankfully, it was bone-dry, so they didn't make a noise. Minutes later they were back on the surface, weaving through the buildings once again.

"Here's good." Daisy said, and Ghoul and Kobra followed her into the small back-room of a closed store. They sat down, munching on snack bars. After getting lost twice through the winding maze that was North Battery City, the three Killjoys thought they deserved some food. But it didn't last long, because they needed to be on their way again.

Ghoul was worried about Wynter. What if she got caught? What if she got shot? What if, what if? He bit his tongue hard. She'd be fine. She was more than capable of hiding and handling herself among the citizens and guards of Battery City, except they were probably on the lookout for her.

Or not.

Battery City was probably the _last_ place they thought she'd be. Ghoul breathed in deeply, trying to think about something else. He focused on his surroundings and listening carefully to everything. The sound of Kobra's boots on the concrete, Daisy's calm breathing, his own heartbeat. Soon he was more relaxed, but that ended quickly too. They'd reached an important part in the plan.

They had to find a way to get across a wide street without being seen. It was nearly seven in the morning, which meant there were a few people on the streets already, heading to work or heading home from a night shift.

The three Killjoys conjured up a plan that once there were as few people in sight, they would make a run for the alley opposite them.

Kobra peered around the corner and gave the thumbs up to Daisy, who ran across first. When she was there and Ghoul and Kobra made sure she hadn't been spotted, they checked again.

All clear. Ghoul sprinted across and saw a couple of faces turn towards him, but they were so drugged up that they didn't really notice him or couldn't be bothered with saying anything.

Breathing a huge sigh of relief as he made it, Ghoul made sure the coast was clear for Kobra, and gave him the okay sign. Kobra ran across but as he was enveloped in the dim light of the alley, a voice called out.

"Hey! You! Stop!" _Shit_ Ghoul thought, poking his head out around the corner. A guard was striding towards them, his faded black and white mask not showing any emotion.

"You! I saw that. Do you think you could get away with that? Look at me!" The guard yelled to a young teenager, who was hiding something behind his back.

"Hmmm, just what I thought." The guard pulled a pouch out of his pocket and tipped two small, round, white pills onto the boy's hand.

"Swallow them. You're low on the average dosage. Do it." He ordered, and the young boy obeyed. Although Ghoul felt sorry for the kid, he was happy they hadn't been caught. He turned around and beckoned for the others to follow him.

Within a quarter of an hour, they were crouched in a terribly small supply closet, munching down on more food and resting. At midday, the _real_ plan started, but until then, they waited. Jet and the others would take much longer to get to their place than the rest of them did, and they wanted to start at the same time.

"So what've you guys been up to since we last saw you?" Kobra asked Daisy, whose face was lit with the dim yellow glow from the only light bulb in the room.

"Not much actually. Just hanging around home with Static and sometimes Sunny and Kat, who basically live with us and with some other friends they have in Zone 3. And Crash visits sometimes. Like last night, when we started to follow you guys." She paused, waiting for another question. And as she expected, it came.

"What, so Crash doesn't live with you guys?" Ghoul asked.

"Hell no. He's a runner. Zone runner that is. He doesn't want to settle down, as far as we know, but that's all we can get out of him. Not much of a talker, Crash." She said, shrugging.

"But he still hangs out with you guys?" Kobra questioned, a quizzical look on his face.

"Yeah. I don't really understand him. Not many people do. Static does, and they're pretty close, but only if me and the others aren't around. It's probably a weird guy thing." She leant back against one of the walls, stretching her legs out.

Everyone was quiet for a while, and before he knew it, Ghoul realized that hours had passed. So many things on everyone's mind, he guessed. Checking his watch, he noted that they only had half an hour until the plan started.

"Let's get ready and find another place to hide until midday." He said, standing up and stretching. Kobra made sure that the room was exactly the way they'd found it before leaving, in case a guard walked in later on.

Daisy yawned before nodding to Ghoul, who opened the door and stepped out into the sunshine.


	9. Chapter Eight

8

"Hey, there's the others!" Sunny whispered cheerfully to everyone else. Jet, Sunny, and Static had made good time to get to the back of the BLI station, despite the long route that they'd taken. They almost got spot once, and to get around one of the main streets, they had to jump a few roofs.

But they made it and were safe and undiscovered.

"Shh," Jet hissed, putting Sunny's waving hand by her side. He nodded towards a couple of guards who stood not a hundred feet away. They were facing the opposite direction, but that didn't matter much if they were going to make noise. Those guards had ears like dogs. They were also trained to pick up on specific sounds, but that's all the Killjoys knew.

Sunny sulked but stayed quiet nonetheless.

It was nearing midday, and the plan was about to start to take place. Party, Wynter, Kat, and Crash, sitting 50 meters away from them, gave the thumbs up to their group, and moved in on a small door. Jet's group did the same, but with another door. Using a device that Jet hadn't bothered learning the name of, he unlocked the small door and got Sunny and Static inside before closing it quietly, but leaving it unlocked.

Door's like that were a pain to unlock when you were in a hurry.

"Here," He whispered to the other two, handing them goggles before putting on his own. Immediately, the darkness turned into daylight, the night vision goggles working like a charm. Taking off, the three headed towards the exit of the large room. The ceiling was at least 20 feet high, and the room maybe that and a half across. It was filled with high shelves full of cardboard boxes.

_Canned Artificial Beef _and _Spare Linen_ were among the many names on each box. They looked pretty uninteresting, so they skipped looking through them and flattened themselves on the bare wall by the exit door. Using the unlocking device again, Jet heard the door click, and opening it slowly, he poked his head around it.

Two guards to his left, standing in front of a locked door, didn't notice him, so he slipped back inside.

"Right. Um, there are two guards out there, armed, obviously." He reported, and Sunny lit up.

"Can I take them out?" She was so eager to that it was hard for Jet to say no. He knew she could probably handle them both on her own, and she had a wicked eye for aiming.

"Just injure them enough so it'll knock them out," Jet told her, handing her a stun-gun. It was the same type of gun that the guards used in the main BLI station the night that they all got shot and Wynter had helped.

Sunny nodded and opened the door slowly. Then suddenly, she jumped out into the open and fired point blank into both of the guard's chests. Within a second, both were on the ground, moaning in pain, before they blacked out. Heaving a sigh of relief, Jet and Static came out from their hiding place and high-fived Sunny. She grinned before following Jet along the wall that was to the right of the door. He could see another guard up ahead, and pulled Static and Sunny behind a corner with him.

Just as he was going to ask Sunny to knock the guard out, he saw Wynter appear at the far side of the room.

Jet shook his head wildly, trying not to scream and shout, but it was too late.

Crouching behind a large truck, Wynter put away her water bottle and threw her food bag under the truck, hoping it would still be there when she got back. They'd given Jet, Sunny, and Static the thumbs up a few seconds before and were now preparing to enter themselves. Wynter regrettably switched the safety off on her gun, praying she wouldn't have to use it. The others did the same before keeping low as they ran for the door.

Party tried the door and was surprised to find it unlocked, even though it seemed suspicious. He opened it cautiously before realizing that on the other side it was only a loading dock. No one was in there. He ushered the others in quickly before closing the door. Wynter led the way this time.

"Wait," Kat whispered quietly, looking up and down a row of boxes that were tightly packed onto a narrow shelf.

"There might be something useful here." She said, her dark eyes scanning the names on the boxes.

"Kat, we have to go," Party said, dragging her by the arm after Wynter.

Wynter opened the door and a narrow hallway lay beyond. A couple of doors led off it but it was pretty quiet behind them. Edging along the wall, the others followed her closely, keeping their footsteps soft. There was light up ahead, and Wynter came to a stop before a corner. She looked back at the others, who were all looking at her.

Nodding her head, Wynter stepped out, gun up, sweeping the room with a quick glance. She'd moved out a few meters in front of the others before realizing she'd seen something move.

Was that _Jet_? Why was he shaking his head at her?

Lights flashed before Wynter's eyes, and her knees buckled before she realized what was happening.

That's when the real pain hit.

"What the hell was that?" Ghoul hissed, panicking. The loud gunshot still echoed off the small room's walls. Ghoul, Daisy, and Kobra had just gotten into the station. They'd snuck along a narrow hallway before ending up in a supply closet.

Ghoul threw open the second door in the room and there was another hallway before him. Kobra gripped Ghoul's arm and he turned around, wide-eyed.

"Don't freak out, I'm sure it was nothing." He said, trying to sound reassuring. Then another gunshot rebounded off the walls. All three of them stayed put for another minute before carrying on.

"I bet Sunny got a guard or two just then. She's pretty good with a gun, you know." Daisy said, trying to lift Ghoul's spirits. It wasn't working.

Reaching the end of the hall, Kobra tugged on the handle of a door and it opened into a brightly lit room full of row after row of medication.

Then there was another gunshot, this time it was closer.

"No, no, no, no." Ghoul mumbled, running to the end of the room before Daisy or Kobra could stop him. He flung open the door and stood stock still. In front of him, only mere meters away, Wynter collapsed onto her knees, her hands going to the side of her stomach.

They came away red. Too red.

"WYNTER!" Ghoul screamed, running for her, before he realized there were six guards in the room. Whipping his gun out of his belt faster than anyone could see, he fired point-blank into the neck of the nearest one. The second and third ones went down with a clean wound right between the eyes. The fourth and fifth guards were hit in the heart.

The last guard, the one with the smoking gun, Ghoul walked straight up to. After a sickening _crack!_ the guard went down, his neck twisted at a funny angle. Ghoul saw Jet, Party, Kobra, and the others running to the scene, but he didn't bother talking to them.

He bent down over Wynter, who was trying to sit up and stop the bleeding on her stomach.

"Lie down, lie down." He kept repeating, pushing her down. She did what she was told, clenching her teeth.

The white fabric of her shirt was stained red, and Ghoul's hands started shaking. He pressed his palms hard on the wound, but still felt the blood trying to get out.

"Come on, dammit, come on!" He yelled, frustration filling his face.

"You have to–you have to–" Wynter stuttered, trying to sit up again. She coughed loudly, and tried to clear her throat.

"Don't move!" Ghoul yelled at her, pushing her back down onto the ground. He was really panicking now. His hands kept moving, shaking. He couldn't keep them still. His eyes started tearing up with anger.

"Not again. I'm not going through this again." He hissed, mostly to himself. He barely heard the other gun shots, or the cries of the other fallen Killjoys.

The only thing that mattered was Wynter. He couldn't lose another daughter.

_What?_

_Daughter?_

_No, no. She isn't . . . I mean, she is but she isn't actually . . ._

He tried to clear his mind and bit his tongue hard enough to taste blood in his mouth. His thoughts cleared, unscrambled, and he tried to think of what to do when Wynter tugged on his sleeve with a weak arm.

"Ahh . . ." Wynter moaned, slumping to the ground. Her hands went to her stomach and they came away red. She swore silently to herself and sat on the floor. Her thoughts started to get muddled, her vision fuzzy.

_No way. _She said to herself, and blinked hard. Her fuzziness went away but was replaced with a wave pain from the side of her stomach. If she remembered human anatomy right, she'd been hit around where the iliac artery was.

_ How do I know that? Why is it that when something bad happens, I think of things that aren't important?_

That wasn't good.

Human's bled out pretty quickly.

She saw Ghoul running towards her before red filled her version for a split second.

"WYNTER!" She heard him scream before stopping in the middle of the room. She didn't turn her head but could heard bodies slumping to the ground. Then Ghoul disappeared from her range of sight, and she heard a _crack!_ before he came back to her side.

She tried sitting up, but Ghoul pushed her down, mumbling something that Wynter couldn't hear over the rush of blood in her ears. She obediently lay back down, grinding her teeth together against the pain in her stomach.

Even through the shirt, Wynter could feel Ghoul's hands shaking.

_I hope he doesn't try to stitch me up_ was all she could think of. The strangeness of the sudden thought nearly made her laugh before she remembered what a terrible situation she was in.

Ghoul pressed his hands on her wound, which made her want to scream. It felt like fire, or what being burnt badly would feel like, since she'd never been burnt.

"Come on!" Ghoul yelled, loud enough for Wynter to hear. His eyes filled with hot, angry tears and Wynter tried to tell him what to do.

""You have to–you have to–" She tried saying, but it wouldn't come out right. What was wrong with her? Why couldn't she speak properly? Her words slurred and she stuttered in frustration. Ghoul yelled at her as she tried to sit up, and he pushed her back down again.

She coughed hard, her lungs hurting. Her hand went up to cover her mouth, and came away splattered with red.

This wasn't good.

Wynter tugged on Ghoul's sleeve, but didn't have the strength to hold on for long. He turned to her, panic in his eyes.

Seeing the blood on her hand, he stopped trying to slow the blood flow and stared at her hand. Even he knew that this was not good.

At that moment though, Sunny pushed Ghoul to the side and came up with a first aid kit. Ghoul tried to grab it off her but she yelled something at him that made him stop for a moment before thrashing at her again.

Jet appeared from behind Ghoul and grabbed him, pulling him away from Wynter.

She watched through hazy, teary red eyes as Jet dragged Ghoul away. He tried to bite and scratch and Jet like an animal, but Jet was too strong. Tears poured out of the edges of Ghoul's eyes, and he bit his lip.

Even in her state, Wynter managed to hear him as he screamed, _"DON'T YOU LEAVE ME, WYNTER! DO YOU HEAR ME? YOU _CANNOT_ LEAVE ME!"_

Then she blacked out.


End file.
